


Daddy Dearest.

by The_Lady_smaell



Series: Something To Protect. [1]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (2012), The Incredible Hulk - All Media Types
Genre: All for one and one for all, And is a sneaky bastard, Angst, Author is not a Doctor/ Nuclear Physicicst/ Scientist/ Escape Artist of any kind., Author is sorry/ not sorry for the ending., BAMF Hulk, BAMF Pepper, BAMF Team, Battlefield: Avengers Tower., Bruce Banner & Tony Stark Friendship, Character Redemption., Cliffhangers, Controversial Topics mentioned., Gen, Hidden Talents, Howard Stark Is a Dick, Howard Stark's Bad Parenting, Hulk is a good Bro, I like writing tags., Implied Human Experimentation., Implied Peril., Minor Character Death, Nick Fury Knows All, OC's (Sorry), Past Abuse, Protective Bruce, Roadtrips... Sorta., Science Bros, Shitty childhoods, So please cut me some slack on the technical stuff, Team Bonding, Team Feels, The Author Regrets Nothing, The Avengers are here to Kick Ass, Thor Is a Good Bro, Thor takes his damn time, Tony Feels, Tony Has Issues, Tony Stark is a sneaky bastard., Tony looks out for his Damn team!, Treason, Trust Issues., WSC take Dickness to a new level., We all HATE General Ross, Wibbley-Wobbly Marvel science, World Security Council are dicks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-25
Updated: 2014-09-20
Packaged: 2017-12-09 12:11:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 91,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/774047
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Lady_smaell/pseuds/The_Lady_smaell
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Tony's curiosity gets the better of him he honestly doesn't expect to find much. What he uncovers however could have more impact than he ever imagined.... Especially for himself.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Summary: When Tony's curiosity gets the better of him he honestly doesn't expect to find much. What he uncover however could have more impact than he ever imagined.... Especially for himself.
> 
> A/N: I'm not entirely sure about this story but roll with me. I've always been interested in Tony's relationship with his father as it seems to be one of the only things that really gets under his skin, so in my usual messed up way I thought I'd explore it. Strap yourself in it's gonna be a random and bumpy ride.
> 
> Disclaimer: The Avengers do not belong to me. Which as previously stated is probably a good thing. XD
> 
> Warnings: Um... Bad language, Science Bro's awesomeness (because I loves 'em), mentions of past abuse, possibly some angstyness, feels and maybe a teeny bit of Steve bashing (It'll make sense I promise, I actually really like Steve)
> 
> A/N2: Really looking for feed back so comments are appreciated.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tony gets bored and finds something interesting

Chapter One:

Tony Stark was bored and irritable.

He had just had to endure a long day of repetitive meetings with a bunch of stuffy old bastards who wouldn't know progress if it bit them in the ass and right now he needed to talk to someone who actually spoke  _English_ before his head imploded from the utter stupidity he'd been subjected to. That meant he was currently seeking out his favorite physicist/ giant green rage monster, who apparently didn't want to  _be_ found.

Growling he stalked the halls of R&D to no avail, loosening the silk tie of his immaculately pressed and tailored suit before giving into temptation and calling upon JARVIS.

"JARVIS where is Bruce?"

"Doctor Banner is in the cold lab on the floor below you Sir."

Temporarily mollified the billionaire stalked toward the elevator allowing the tension to ease from his shoulders as his mind contemplated just what Banner was doing in the cold lab and casually jabbed the call button. The elevator arrived promptly and within minutes Tony found himself punching in the cold labs secure code, stepping inside as the glass panelled door swooshed open. He felt a small smile cross his features as he spotted his quarry in the far corner hunched over a microscope and seemingly oblivious to his arrival.

Well that just wouldn't do.

Feeling mischevious Tony walked as silently as he could across the room, picking up the first pointy object (a pippet) he found along the way and moved behind Bruce poised and ready for a sneaky attack.

"Whatever you're thinking about doing Stark, don't."

The physicist's voice was wry and he still hadn't looked up from his microscope, causing the billionaire to scowl.

"Wouldn't dream of it Big Guy..." He replied sulkily, tossing the pippet on the work station. "...How did you know it was me?"

Bruce let out a small, soft chuckle and finally looked up from the microscope but still didn't turn to face the other man, instead scribbling a few observations down on a nearby pad of paper.

"You mean besides that odious aroma you call cologne?" There was an indignant sqwark from Tony "JARVIS informed me."

"Traitor."

Again there was that soft chuckle and Banner finally turned around, folding his arms across his chest.

"Don't take it out on JARVIS even if he hadn't told me it was obviously going to be you."

Tony grinned at finally having the man's attention.

"So you're psychic now? Didn't know that came with mean green's territory. Although it could be useful, we might finally be able to find out what Natasha is actually thinking."

Bruce rolled his eyes and unfolded his arms, settling his hands against the desk behind him.

"I haven't suddenly become the 'Widow Whisperer' Tony and besides you're the only person who visits me in the lab, I think I made Thor's brain implode the one time he braved it and the others know better."

There was an awkward silence which Tony quickly broke.

"So what are you working on?"

The physicist gave a genuine smile, his eyes twinkling with interest.

"Well a cryogenics lab commissioned your R&D to try and create a serum that reduced muscle atrophy in cold-sleep patients. They were having a bit of difficulty with some of the molecular structure stabilization and asked if I'd take a look."

Tony nodded admittedly intrigued by the idea, he'd never really taken an interest in cryogenics but he had a feeling the idea Bruce was working on had other applications besides cold-sleep patients.

"Sounds interesting... Let me guess, it was the little brunette with the ponytail who asked you?"

Bruce rolled his eyes and turned back to the microscope ignoring the question entirely, this however didn't deter the billionaire a cheeky grin breaking out over his face.

"It  _was_ , wasn't it..." He crowed cheerfully and he put on a fake falsetto " _Oh Doctor Banner could you please help me with this, pretty please._ She is totally crushing on you..."

"Tony, did you actually come in here for something other than interupting me?" The physicist asked, voice stern.

Stark stopped his performance pushing his hands into his pockets.

"In all honesty... No. I've just had a miserable day dealing with idiotic bureaucrats and people more interested in lining their pockets than doing something productive. I  _need_ some  _normal_."

Bruce had to laugh at that, since when had anything associated with him been considered normal? But then again Tony Stark was almost a force of nature perhaps even more so than the Hulk, so it sort of made sense that he'd want to be around similar forces to make himself feel normal.

Well that was one theory anyway.

"I tell you what Tony help me finish up here and we'll go down to the basement and blow off some steam... By which I mean blow some stuff up."

Even though he couldn't see it Bruce could feel the grin spreading across Tony's face and heard the rustling of cloth as the billionaire stripped off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves.

"Sounds like a plan Brucey-Boy. What do you need me to do?"

"Just record these observations and transfer them to the cryogenics company's database."

Tony, although not overly thrilled with essentially being a secretary set himself to the task at hand. He pulled up one of the holographic monitors and furiously began typing in data, skimming over and double checking (It was a force of habit he'd never been able to shake) the equations Bruce had written. It all looked good and the billionaire smiled happily, an odd feeling of pride settling in his chest. This would have taken the other members of R&D days, possibly weeks of intensive research and Bruce had pinpointed the problem and solved it in mere hours. Honestly persuading him to stay had been one of his best idea's ever both personally and professionally, not that he would ever admit it.

The two men lapsed into silence both lost in their own little worlds. Tony quickly finished the task Bruce had assigned him and was restlessly tapping his finger against the rim of the glass of water he'd just poured for himself staring at the screen before him. He had a wealth of information at his fingertips and he wasn't investigating.

Well this just  _wouldn't_ do.

After all as CEO it was his duty to know who his company was dealing with.

A mischevious smile crossed the billionaire's face as dexterous fingers flicked across the screen. He was almost disappointed by how easy it was to break through their firewall and was soon perusing his way through various projects, financial backers and other random pieces of nonsense. So far it was nothing out of the ordinary and altogether rather dull. That was when he spotted a familiar looking logo sitting at the bottom of list attached to a completely nameless file.

Well that was interesting, what interest would S.H.I.E.L.D have in a cryogenics laboratory?

He tapped on the file and instantly a warning box flared up denying him access, he spared a quick glance at the physicist who was still engrossed in whatever it was he was looking at and realising he still had some time Tony set to work.

His fingers worked across the screen, pulling apart the various encryptions surrounding the anonymous file. After half an hour he was starting to get a little frustrated, it seemed there was no end to the defences and he couldn't even tell how close he was to his quarry. This one file had more in the way of protection than most government servers and he should know, he'd hacked most of them at one time or another.

By this time Bruce had finished his work and had walked over to see what had captured his friends attention. When he caught sight of the various warning boxes and bits of computer code flying in streams across the screen he let out an amused but exasperated sigh.

"Tony, please tell me you didn't hack into the cryo-labs server?"

"Okay I won't."

There was a disapproving shake of a head.

"You do know that's illegal right?"

"Legality has never really been forte of mine..." Tony bit his lip in concentration as he worked through a particularly complex piece of code. "...Besides this is to do with S.H.I.E.L.D, admit you're curious to know what Fury's hiding in a cryo-lab? I bet it his sense of humour."

The physicist couldn't quite suppress the chuckle and he couldn't refute Tony's words, he was curious to know what S.H.I.E.L.D was hiding.

"Yes! Got ya' you ridiculous excuse for a defence program!"

Tony crowed in victory as the screen opened before him and Banner and both men looked confused.

One file.

There was only one file.

Bruce adjusted his glasses and frowned, he didn't like this, it somehow didn't feel right.

"HO_ST_EN001, well that doesn't sound all that exciting."

Tony's voice sounded genuinely disappointed and his finger hovered file icon as he rose the glass of water to his lips. Without any hesitation he flicked it open eyes scanning the screen as a wealth of documents opened before his eyes, which widened exponentially as the glass slipped from his grasp smashing on the floor.

"Tony... What the..."

Bruce started but stopped as he caught sight at the angry yet flabbergasted look on the billionaire's face. He quickly turned to the open files and immediately he felt his mouth fall open in utter shock.

"Holy shit..." The physicist murmured.

Tony pulled away a snarl firmly affixed to his face and stalked out the lab like a predator, full of anger and intent. An intent that involved a certain manipulative, one-eyed bastard. He had never felt so angry and betrayed in his life, including that whole incident with Obidiah. After all he'd done for S.H.I.E.L.D, this,  _this_ was how they repaid him? Fury was going to crash and burn for this, Tony swore it and Anthony Edward Stark never went back on his promises.

Meanwhile Bruce stood in the lab completely shocked and bewildered by what he'd just seen before taking off after his friend in the hope that he'd be able to stop him doing something he'd regret.

~End Chapter One~


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tony is angry, Nick Fury is clueless and Bruce is forced to play peacekeeper before the Hulk shows up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW! O_O Thank you so much for all the kudos!! You guys are awesome!!
> 
> Warnings: Angry Tony is angry... therefore foul language ahoy.

It was fair to say that Nick Fury was not a man who liked surprises.

His line of work had made him very good at _dealing_ with them but that still didn't mean he liked them. That was why when a ranting and visibly furious Stark stormed into his office closely followed by a cowed looking Banner he didn't so much as bat an eye, ingrained reactions training a perfectly blank look on his face.

"You have an absolute fucking nerve Fury!" The billionaire roared doing a fair impression of the giant rage monster he was so fond of.

Again the director of S.H.I.E.L.D was taken aback but he maintained his calm demeanor despite his shock. Stark _never_ addressed him like that, there was always some stupid sarcastic nickname, _always_ some demeaning variation on his name even when the guy was aggravated beyond all comprehension. But this? This was something he'd never seen in the billionaire before it was raw, open and volatile, not that Stark wasn't already volatile but something about this seemed different. The man was not known for being so obvious with his emotions, it was certainly strange and maybe a little pushing was in order?

"Stark get the fuck out of my office I ain't got time for your bullshit right now."

Tony's eyes glittered with malice and a deep, dark hatred that would have had lesser men probably pissing themselves in fear but it did little to dint Fury's armor, the director of S.H.I.E.L.D had been subjected to worse.

"No. I think now is a perfect time for my 'bullshit' since if you don't I will not be held accountable for what happens."

The director couldn't help but give a small snort of derisive laughter; he'd heard the billionaire spout that line before.

"You would think you would have learned by now Stark that using the 'I'll cut all ties with S.H.I.E.L.D' line doesn't work with me."

The darkness in Tony's eyes seemed to harden and a ruthless smile crossed his lips, all teeth and no warmth.

"I didn't say I was going to cut anything _Fury_ , that would be far, _far_ too easy. No, what I have planned would be much _involved_ than that and make no mistake I will bury you _and_ S.H.I.E.L.D."

Fury quirked an eyebrow curious but at the same time deeply disturbed by the other man's tone. Something big had happened, something colossal that had rocked Stark to his very core and now the man was lashing out at those he thought he was responsible. Fury knew that he had to tread carefully, the billionaire was clear skirting on the edge and it wouldn't take much to push him over.

"As much as I love the power plays Stark I'm busy. Now get the fuck out unless you have a point to make."

"Oh I have a point! Tell me where the fuck he is!"

The single visible eye narrowed in confusion.

"He? Who are you talking about Stark?"

"Don't play dumb with me! TELL ME WHERE HE IS!" Tony slammed his fists down on Fury's desk, spittle flying from his mouth as he roared.

The tension in the room was on a knife edge and Bruce finally seemed to snap out of the daze he'd been ensnared in since he stepped in the room. Tentatively he stepped forward and placed a hand on Tony's shoulder squeezing gently, the billionaire rounded still looking furious and ready to take someone's head off.

"Tony you need to _calm down_. This is going to get you nowhere... Except possibly a jail-cell."

The irony of _Bruce Banner_ asking him to calm down was not lost on Tony but he was still feeling to raw inside to actually give a flying fuck. He _needed_ to know what Fury knew, _needed_ to know with every fiber of his being and neither S.H.I.E.L.D nor the Hulk was going to stop him.

He was Tony _fucking Stark_ and he always got what he wanted.

"I will calm down when the director here gives me _what I want_. I'd prefer to do it peacefully but I have no objections to getting the suit out."

Banner sighed, grip still firm on the billionaire's shoulder, his gaze measured and firm. He understood that the other man was upset, had _every right_ to be upset but this really wasn't the best way to go about this. Although to be fair if there was a right way to go about it he genuinely couldn't think of it, the situation was certainly unique.

"I don't think that will be necessary Tony..."

"Really? Because I'm starting to think that it's going to be _very_ necessary."

Fury watched with interest as the two scientists stared one another down, neither one giving so much as a millimeter. Banner's iron calm and fortitude versus the volatile inferno that was Stark, it was a bet that he certainly wouldn't take there were far too many variables. But as he watched Fury realized that there were still a few things missing from this whole scenario and he had a feeling that he was going to have to go around Stark for answers as the man was far from rational at the moment.

"Doctor Banner care to explain what the fuck he's raving about?"

The physicist released Tony's shoulder and pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation. Beside him the billionaire growled in warning and folded his arms across his chest. Bruce blatantly ignored him, his head was starting to ache and he could feel the 'Other Guy' starting to push at his control. The sooner this was over the better for everyone around him. Ignoring Tony's glare he reluctantly handed the tablet he'd grabbed on the way out of the lab to Fury, he'd had a funny feeling that he'd need it.

"This."

The director frowned at the quiet finality in Banner's voice almost like a death knell and took the pro-offered tablet his eye scanning down the documents. What had riled Stark up so much about a bunch of medical documents? His eye flicked up to the top and he felt his jaw drop open as he read the name at the top of the screen.

This was _impossible_.

This was beyond impossible.

But the proof was right in front of his, well eye.

"Where did you find this?" His voice was quiet and full of anger that was not directed at the men stood before him.

Tony looked completely aghast at the look of utter shock on Nick Fury's face; no one was that good of an actor not even the spy among spies. Finally realizing that perhaps Fury really didn't know what he was talking about he backed off, still a little disturbed by the blatant show of emotion.

"On a cryo-lab server flagged under a S.H.I.E.L.D emblem and buried under more defense measures than New York after 9/11."

The billionaire's voice was hollow as the rage and adrenaline filtered from his body. Fury just shook his head at the rather tasteless comment, a hollow chuckle escaping his lips. He knew Stark well enough to know that this information had not been obtained lawfully but that was nothing unexpected. The man was a constant thorn in his side creating more chaos than any person should be physically able to but then so were the rest of the Avengers and he wouldn't change that, it had literally saved the world. He could understand why Stark was so hurt over this, he didn't trust easily and this was a deep betrayal.

But what to do now?

To say that the situation he'd been put it was a clusterfuck would be the understatement of the year and that was really saying something considering the year he'd had. Someone had orcastrated this whole shit-storm under S.H.I.E.L.D's banner and there were only a handful of people who could do that under radar.

This _reeked_ of the council and the last thing he wanted to do was deal with their bullshit.

Grimacing he handed the tablet back to Banner and steeped his fingers in front of his face deep in thought while the two scientists watched on somewhat twitchy.

Fury came to a quick decision.

"I'll help you find his location..."

Tony's jaw dropped in shock, he'd honestly been expecting Fury to tell them to fuck off and deal with it themselves. The director gave a weak chuckle at the flabbergasted look on the billionaire's face, a vast contrast to his usual smug arrogance.

"You forget Stark he was my friend too, you ain't the only one feeling betrayed here. So I'll help you find his location but beyond that you're on your own S.H.I.E.L.D can't be seen to be actively involved in this, especially if who I think is behind it."

Composed once again Tony gave a small nod, after seeing the other man's reactions he had a good idea who was behind it too, the same fuckers who had sent the nuke in to Manhattan. He just about repressed the angry growl at that particular memory and from the look on Bruce's face and the slight flecks of green in his eyes Tony surmised the physicist felt the same way.

"You got it Captain Pugwash."

It was lame even by Tony's standards, the dual groans attesting to that fact but both Bruce and Fury were relieved that he seemed to be more like himself rather than the raving, homicidal lunatic he'd been mere minutes prior. Stark turned to his companion and shot him a cheeky smirk before turning toward the door and heading toward it, he hadn't exactly gotten the information that he'd wanted but at least he was on the right track and he wasn't the only person pissed off by the whole shit storm. As he reached the sliding doors closely followed by Bruce, Fury called out to them his face once again serious.

"Can you _try_ and keep this quiet until I find something out?"

Tony gave a thumbs up before turning and walking out the door. It wasn't as if anyone would actually believe him anyway, they would probably say he was having a breakdown or something equally ridiculous.

The man in question had been dead for twenty five years after all.

~End Chapter Two~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments as always are really appreciated.


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Clint is a smart ass and worries, Tony acts somewhat childishly, Bruce tells little white lies and Steve decides to take matters into his own hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! You guys are all awesome! Thanks so much for the comments and Kudos! *Glomps everyone*

Fury worked fast Bruce had to admit, it had barely been two days and the man had already gotten back to them with a location that was a 'highly probable target'. Which was a good thing as neither he nor the billionaire had slept in that time and the strain was starting to take it's toll on both men. It had been hard going for both scientists to keep quiet, especially Tony who was still exceedingly pissed off about the whole situation but somehow they had managed it without raising any suspicions.

Or so they thought.

"So are you two mad scientists _finally_ going to let us in on whatever it is you've got up your sleeve or should we start planning your funerals now?"

On any other day Clint's smile would have been infectious but after over forty-eight hours without sleep both Bruce and Tony were on their last nerve. The billionaire scowled at the archer and folded his arms across his chest defensively, a guarded look in his eyes.

"None of you business Barton."

Hawkeye's smile dropped and a look of worry crossed his features, he was a little shocked at the reaction to his jibe. Stark was usually good for a bit of goading and generally wasn't the defensive or secretive type, he was antagonistic yes, secretive no. If Clint was being _really_ honest he was surprized Tony knew the _meaning_ of the word secret let alone keep one, it wasn't really in his vocabulary. Anyway the billionaire was definitely more the 'Look at me, I have something awesome!' type and Clint got that he really did, that was why this all felt wrong.

"What crawled up your ass and died Shellhead?"

He'd left himself wide open for a innuendo laced retort, a Stark special as he liked to call it and he waited for Tony to take the bait. The billionaire's face hardened and inwardly Clint flinched, this did not bode well. He flicked a glance toward Natasha and Steve both of whom were sitting on the couch. Natasha had her usual mask of calm indifference affixed firmly in place but the archer could just pick out the shadow of concern in her eyes and Steve's face was set in a grimace, he hated conflict especially when Stark was involved.

"I thought I said it was none of your fucking business Barton."

No innuendo, no awful pun, no stupid archery related nickname, something was definitely up.

"Tony that's enough..."

Clint almost jumped at the sound of Banner's fatigued voice, he'd forgotten that the other scientist was even there. Tony seemed to pause for a second before throwing up his hands in frustration and storming from the room muttering mutinously under his breath. Bruce let out a weary sigh and flashed a small, apologetic smile at the other three Avengers.

"Sorry about that."

The physicist sounded utterly exhausted and looked far more tired than any of them had ever seen him, Clint merely shrugged in response.

"Not your fault Doc, you can't stop Princess Antonia from being an utter dickwad, as much as you try you can't change the natural order of things."

Bruce laughed but it sounded strained.

"I know what you mean but it was still uncalled for... It's been a stressful few days but Tony should've known better than to take it out on you."

The other three Avengers all looked concerned and Steve moved to ask the next question.

"Stressful?"

There was a barely perceptable shift in the physicist's body language but they noticed it immediately, Bruce was nervous about something and he had that slightly guilty look on his face like he let slip something he shouldn't have.

"Just a project we're working on. It's kind of... Delicate and you know how Tony is, he's not built for patience."

The lie was smooth, born from years of practice but the rest of the team (with the exception of Steve) were also practiced liars and were able to spot one from twenty paces. Clint and Natasha shared a deep look while Steve continued to frown clearly not happy with the situation. The physicist shifted under the intense scrutiny and quickly bade them goodbye fairly fleeing for the door to escape the questioning stares, they tended to make the 'Other Guy' uncomfortable and that was almost as bad him being angry.

"Well that was unusual... Even for Banner." Barton announced to no one in particular.

From her position on the couch Natasha sat up and rested her hands on her lap, cool green eyes calculating.

"You're right, it isn't like Doctor Banner to blatantly lie to us and Stark certainly seemed out of sorts. I think there is something going on."

The frown on Steve's face deepened he had never really been a fan of secrets and lies. He understood the need for them; he wasn't _that_ naive but it still didn't mean that he enjoyed their presence especially between supposed team-mates. It always led to trouble and the Avengers were able to create enough of that already.

"We need to know what is going on, in case it compromises anyone." His voice was solemn and authorative.

The two spies spared each other a fleeting yet knowing glance before nodding having experienced their own fair share of 'compromised' situations they knew that Steve's concern was valid. Such situations were generally unpleasant, usually led to bloodshed, violence and loss of life and were the cause of more nightmares than either of them would care to admit.

"So... What's the plan Cap?" Clint sounded as cool as ever but there was a trace of unease in his voice.

The super-soldier's brow furrowed as he thought, they needed information that much was obviously clear and in any place inhabited by Tony Stark there was only one real place to go.

"JARVIS? Are you there?"

There was a slow moment where Steve thought that the AI wouldn't respond (he seriously wouldn't put it past Stark to program JARVIS to ignore him) but eventually the smooth British voice filtered through the room.

"As always Captain Rogers. How may I be of assistance?"

For a brief moment Steve felt uneasy, he didn't like the idea of going behind Tony's back and he knew that the billionaire was not going to be impressed when he found out (he had just as many trust issues as the rest of them) but this needed to be done, they needed to know what was going on, for all their sakes.

"I was wondering if you could tell me about Mr. Stark's and Doctor Banner's latest project."

"There are no current records of any joint project between Mr. Stark and Doctor Banner, Captain Rogers."

A blond brow rose in surprize and Steve turned to the seated assasins who looked just as perplexed at this turn of events.

"What about singularly?" Natasha asked unwilling to give up the line of enquiry.

"There are no current records of any current projects for either Mr. Stark or Doctor Banner, Agent Romanoff."

The three Avengers looked at one another in concern. On the exceptionally rare chance that neither man had done anything for the last few days (which they all immediately discounted; this was _Bruce_ and _Tony_ , they didn't do stationary and Steve was pretty certain their heads would explode if they tried.) this therefore mean that they were indeed hiding something and were going to great lengths to hide it. However they had sorely underestimated the curiosity and tenacity of their team-mates.

Steve sighed and shook his head he still wasn't used to this secretive way of thinking.

"I don't like this you guys."

Neither Clint nor Natasha could argue with his feelings because they exactly mirrored their own. They could feel the shifts in the air, an inperceptable _something_ that suggested something was about to happen and they needed to be prepared.

"Where are they now JARVIS?"

The AI whirred slightly as if it was stalling.

"Both Mr. Stark and Doctor Banner are in the lower garage Captain Rogers."

The garage? Well that was odd; maybe not for Tony but certainly for Bruce, the man never left the tower unless it was for 'official' purposes. He seemed to think it was safer that way.

"I'm going to talk to them, we need to know what kind of stunt they are pulling."

Clint and Natasha gave each other a wary glance both debating whether their leaders plan of action was an appropriate one. With tensions running rampant and Steve and Tony's checkered history it was a disaster waiting to happen and they all knew it.

"Are you sure that's a good idea Cap?" Hawkeye asked, face etched into a grimace.

The super-soldier shrugged half heartedly a frown still firmly affixed to his features.

"Not really but at least it is an idea... We're running low on options here."

Neither assassin could argue with that point and they watched as the fearless Captain America strode toward the lift with a determined air that belied the nervousness he and they all felt.

Down in the garage the two men in question were currently having a staring contest.

"Tony, there was no need for that."

Bruce tried not to sound exasperated and held the billionaire's gaze as Stark's dark eyes narrowed.

"He shouldn't have been sticking his beak where it wasn't wanted."

The physicist raised an eyebrow, the look on his face clearly screaming 'What are you? Ten?' and Tony felt himself blanch slightly. So _maybe ___(and it was a big _maybe_ ) he'd been acting a bit childishly but how exactly did Bruce expect him to react? This whole clusterfuck (it's official name now) was breaking out all of his issues like a plague; hell there were even some issues that he hadn't even been aware of rearing their ugly heads. In short he was a mess, a gaping, whinging, pathetic mess, so _excuse_ him if he didn't feel like being his usual chipper self.

The staring contest continued. 

"Okay! Fine! I acted like a prick, happy now? I'll apologize to Tweety Pie when we get back." 

Bruce gave a sigh. 

"Listen... I know this is difficult Tony but you have to hold it together, you can't go blowing up at the slightest thing." 

The billionaire momentarily considered calling the physicist out but stopped himself before the words slipped out suddenly remembering who he was talking to. He knew that he had daddy issues but he had absolutely nothing on Bruce Banner if his memory served him right and it always did. Finally relenting Tony dropped his gaze and let out a breathy sigh, looking sheepish. 

"You're right, I know...I'm... I'm... Uh... Well y'know." 

"Sorry?" 

"Yeah... That..." 

Bruce shook his head somehow unable to remain annoyed at the abashed looking genius. 

"Don't worry about it, lets just get this show on the road." 

Tony couldn't agree with that sentiment more and revved the engine of the Audi. 

Steve heard the roar of the Audi's powerful engine as the lift doors opened and sighed as he saw the cloud of smoke erupt from the tailpipe of the rapidly disappearing car. 

He was too late. 

He knew he should just leave it at that and wait for the two scientists to return but his instincts were screaming at him to follow them; that it was somehow important and relevant. Never one to ignore his instincts Steve made his way to his motorcycle and kicked the engine into life setting off after his fellow team-mates. 

_~End Chapter Three~_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Readers make Smaell a happy Lady! *hinthint*_


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the Science Bro's have a road-trip moment, Steve and Tony clash and the truth is finally revealed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tadah! New Chapter! Thanks so much for all the Kudos and comments they really mean a lot! *Glomps everyone* Please keep 'em coming *hinthint winkwink*

The two men sat silence watching the winding roads of New York pass them by. Bruce sighed, things were still tense between him and Tony after the small spat back at the tower and the quiet (which he normally would have been ecstatic about) was quickly becoming oppressive. He needed to do something and fast before things became too uncomfortable. When they reached the next set of traffic lights he decided to broach the subject.

"So... Uh, where are we going?"

The billionaire seemed to snap out of whatever trance he been in and he blinked a few times to clear the mental fog.

"Oh... Sorry Big Guy. Um... Well Fury sent me the coord's for a facility up in Litchfield Hills, apparently it's been disused for a while but he found a bunch of suspicious paper trails leading to and from it that he couldn't ignore it."

Bruce nodded. "So we're driving to Connecticut?"

Tony grinned "Yeah... It's a beautiful day; the sun is shining nothing but miles of open road to race down... That and I know Oscar the grouch doesn't really appreciate flying and I thought I'd need your medical expertise... Biology of the non-sexual variety has never been one of my strong points."

The _'I need your support with this'_ went unspoken but the physicist knew it was there even as he rolled his eyes at the sex comment. If their situations had been reversed (and he thanked every deity that wasn't the case) Bruce certainly would have wanted someone with him at the initial confrontation as a buffer, it was a natural, normal human defense mechanism and the physicist understood it completely. And he'd happily be that buffer for his friend; it was the least he could do after all that Tony had done for him. The billionaire had given him freedom, friendship and most importantly a place to belong and although he would never admit it to Tony (his ego didn't need any more bolstering) he was forever in his debt.

"It's not as if I had anything better to do..."

Bruce's comment was casual and nothing different than his usual response but the is a slight undertone in his voice that Tony picks up on causing a small genuine smile to briefly grace his lips at the hidden message.

_Any time._

The tension between them eased the physicist and the billionaire continued their journey through the winding roads of New York state and up into the North West hills of Connecticut. The conversation between them was somewhat stilted but the silences lacked the awkwardness from earlier in the journey.

"Is it wrong that part of me really hopes that he isn't here?"

The admission shocked Bruce and he turns a questioning look at his friend; frowning as he notices the other man avoiding his gaze.

"No, not really..."

"I mean he would've hated up here... We're in the middle of horse country and he fucking hated horses, called them 'archaic beasts from the primitive age of man'..." He let out a derisive snort "... He never was any good at dealing with living things, case and point right here."

There was a slight bitterness to his words that he couldn't quite suppress and his grip on the steering wheel tightened, turning his knuckles white. The physicist couldn't really think of a suitable reply that Tony wouldn't take as condescension and therefore chose to remain silent, not wanting to cause another disagreement. He'd heard the stories about the elder Stark's neglectful treatment of his family from Pepper and S.H.I.E.L.D but until the last few days he hadn't been aware of how deep-rooted the issues his friend had were. It made Bruce almost wince in sympathy and understanding; the abuse had been different but at the end of the day abuse was still abuse.

Tony sighed and loosened his grip on the wheel forcing down the raw, unwelcome emotions. He knew it was unfair to burden Bruce his problems but out of all the people he knew the quiet, unassuming man was the one who he felt could understand him the most. The billionaire was well aware that the other Avengers had horrors in their pasts but there was a kinship he shared with Bruce that he didn't share with others; something the other members of the team took great joy in teasing them about. Of course he was going to connect with the only member of the team who he could speak to without having to dumb things down, if the rest of the meatheads were jealous of their 'Super Science Club' (Barton's name) then so be it; at least he had something. Smiling slightly at the memory of Hawkeye banging on the lab door screaming at him and Bruce for some reason or another Tony felt his mood lift a tiny amount and fixed his gaze on the country road in front of him.

As the sun began to dip below the horizon Tony had to admit this area of the world was quite beautiful; the dying rays of the sun catching the varying hues in the trees and making them seemingly glow and when they'd stopped for gas in Torrington the people had been friendly enough. Bruce also seemed quite enamored with the area, there was a sense of tranquility here even amidst the hustle and bustle unlike other parts of the state. Even though there was a reason behind it the road trip had been a good idea; once the tension between them had been resolved both men had relaxed simply enjoying the journey and the open road. It was just a pity it was about to end.

"Sir, we are within one mile of the coordinates that S.H.I.E.L.D forwarded to me."

"I hear you JARVIS, you know what to do buddy." There was a slight huff of air as Tony gave a small grunt of displeasure.

"Yes Sir. Scanning frequencies for electronic interference now Sir." The mechanical voice replied.

Bruce shifted in his seat suddenly feeling very uncomfortable. He couldn't quite shake the feeling in his stomach that something was about to happen, not bad exactly, just something. The car dipped over the last hill and in the distance they could see what appeared to be an old military facility and in the back of his mind the 'Other Guy' stirred. The physicist took a deep breath and kept his emotions at bay, calmly telling the Hulk that they were safe and that he wouldn't be needed. The giant seemed to relent in his push for control but Bruce could still feel him behind his eyes watching, waiting for the right moment.

The car slowed to a halt a few hundred yards away and both the billionaire and the physicist took a moment before spurring into action. Tony moved to the trunk of the Audi and pulled it open before extracting a familiar looking suitcase from it.

"The Mark Five?" Bruce asked casually.

The billionaire cracked a wry grin a sliver of his usual humor returning. "Yeah... In case we need to make a quick get-away or do some heavy lifting, by which I mean repulsor something in the face."

Bruce chuckled softly "Can't argue with that."

The other man shrugged nonchalantly, it never hurt to be prepared for all situations and the two of them were essentially walking in blind here. Prepared as they were ever going to be the two scientists set off down the dusty path.

The facility though small seemed to loom around them; it's eerie silence and monochromatic paint-job making both men feel uneasy. Tony was rapidly becoming impatient with the whole endeavor, he knew there was something there; he could feel it with every fiber of his being. He just couldn't fucking _find_ it and if it weren't for the fact they were _supposed_ to be flying under the radar Iron Man would have already had an outing.

"Tony! I think I found something!"

The billionaire could've kissed the other man for uttering those words; this place was starting to really get on his nerves. He practically ran over to the small storage cupboard Bruce had been searching through and skidded to a halt in a comic book fashion, peering in the darkened room. The physicist was standing between two metal shelving units prodding at a blank patch of wall a quizzical look on his face.

"What's up doc?"

When in turmoil resort to humor, that's the Tony Stark way.

Bruce ignored the ridiculous phrase and continued his examination of the wall.

"Look here, this paint is a different shade to the rest of the wall. I think... I think there could be a door or something here..."

Tony moved next to him dark eyes narrowed in concentration, then without warning he shoved the two shelving units causing them to topple to the side revealing an electronic panel embedded in the floor.

"I do believe you may be right my dear Doctor." He replied with a wink, kneeling next to the panel.

The billionaire instantly set to work dismantling the panel; relaxing as he delved into the familiar territory of electronic systems and in no time at all he had hotwired the panel into granting them access. There was a slow mechanical grind as the hidden door slowly opened and Tony had to wonder just when his life had turned into a crappy B-movie.

"So... Am I the only one thinking that isn't ominous looking _at all?_ "

The obviously sarcastic statement was met with a quiet, nervous chuckle that lacked any real amusement.

"I think we moved past ominous when we broke into a supposedly deserted army base in the middle of bum-fuck nowhere, I'm honestly surprised that we haven't been attacked by a knife wielding psycho yet."

"We should be so lucky to get a _regular_ psycho Tony, have you seen our recent run of luck?" Bruce retorted shaking his head.

"Ah touché my friend, let me amend my previous statement. Attacked by an alien laser wielding psycho."

The two of the lapsed into silence looking down the darkened passage with more than a little trepidation, in a show of what he hoped was solidarity Bruce placed a hand on Tony's shoulder and gave a small nod. The billionaire steeled his emotions and took a deep breath slipping back into the mask of bravado he wore so well before taking the first steps down the dark corridor. After a few seconds and a quick scan of the area (it was a force of habit now) the physicist quietly followed vainly trying to prepare himself for what could possibly be awaiting them at the end of this long and winding road.

Steve pulled up outside the small deserted base, having passed Tony's Audi a mile back and kicked out the stand to his bike. He had to admit he was thoroughly confused, just what in god's name were Bruce and Stark doing out here? He was well aware of both men's aversions to anything remotely related to the military, both for very different reasons so for them to be somewhere like this sent all kinds of 'wrong' down his spine.

"JARVIS can you guide me to their location?"

"Of course Captain, both Mr. Stark and Dr. Banner are approximately one hundred and fifty two yards north-north west of your current location and are rapidly moving away."

Steve thanked the AI and moved off in order to catch up with his team-mates. The direction JARVIS had pointed him in led to what appeared to be the bases armory, a run-down, decrepit wreck of a building that looked about ready to collapse. However Steve knew not to take things at face value and on closer inspection he could see the newness masked by the old.

The building had been made to look like this and the Captain's instincts, honed by blood and loss began to scream at him.

This place was bad news.

Cautiously he slipped inside the building senses on full alert, the inside was just like the outer shell, a mock up to make you believe there was nothing there except an old building and Steve didn't like it. Within minutes he found the hotwired electric door and showing none of the trepidation (He'd been frozen for seventy years, very little phased him anymore) the other two men had shown plunged head first into the darkness.

His eyes quickly adjusted to the near darkness as he moved down the corridor, the coolness of the metal under his palms, he moved downwards and soon which reached a large metal door looked as if it had been blown off of its hinges. Through the gloom Steve could make out a familiar blue glow and could hear the soft tone of Bruce's voice. Frowning the Captain stepped into the room.

"Stark!"

There was a hum of repulsors as Iron Man turned around and homed in, face-plate raised and a snarl on his features.

"What the shitting hell Cap! What are you doing here!?" Tony's voice was angry and Steve felt his hackles rise.

"What am _I_ doing here? What are you two doing here?"

Tony just continued to glare.

"It has nothing to do with you Rogers; I thought I made that clear enough back at the tower!"

The blonde felt his temper snap and he grabbed hold of the other man furious blue eyes boring into the angry brown.

"What is your problem Stark!? You can't just go gallivanting off on some little adventure! We're meant to be a team here you can't just fly solo as and when you feel like it!"

"Er… hate to point this out Capsicle but Bruce is here too, I'm not exactly 'flying solo'." Sarcasm dripped from every single word.

"That wasn't what I meant and you know it!" Steve shot back eyes narrowed.

The billionaire turned his back and began to walk away clearly not in the mood for the other mans protests and the blonde finally saw red.

"God Damn it Stark do you always have to be so unreasonable? For once will you just listen to the arrogant rubbish your mouth is spouting and think about someone other than yourself!"

Steve instantly regretted the words once they left his lips, Tony stilled a few paces in front of him his whole body language screaming anger and danger.

"Get the fuck out of here." The billionaire's voice was deadly quiet.

"Make me." The super soldier's voice was as steely as Iron Man's and his blue eyes were cold.

The armor spun around and an arm rose repulsor already charging.

"GET THE FUCK OUT!"

"Tony! That's enough, I'm almost done here and the last thing I need is for you to bring the house down around us."

Bruce's voice cut across the silence full of disapproval and annoyance and the billionaire lowered his arm the bright light of the repulsor fading. Without so much as look of acknowledgement he once again turned his back on Steve and stalked over to where Bruce was fiddling with a cryo-tube. There was a moment of hushed, hurried conversation between the two before the pressure on the door released and a cloud of gas erupted from inside. Concerned for his two team-mates Steve dashed forward almost running into Iron Man's back as he moved. There was a brief moment where all his visual senses were dulled but as the mist began to clear Steve noticed the blurry outline of a person in the tube. He strained his eyes trying to pick out any defining details but it wasn't until the quagmire finally thinned out that he was given an un-obscured view of the occupant.

And instantly felt his breath catch in his throat.

The features were marred by the passage of time but there was no mistaking the man laying unconscious in the tube.

"Howard…"

~End Chapter Four.~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun, dun dunnnnnnn! And so the mystery is revealed lol. Not that all of you guys hadn't already guessed, you're all such smarty pants -_^. Yes that was my lame attempt at flattery since I'm still a comments whore and they really do make me write faster. XP


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which there is another argument; Bruce makes some discoveries and Tony has some thoughts about his past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much guys *Glomps everyone* You're all amazing! Hope you enjoy the next chapter.

When the three men returned to the tower all hell broke loose.

Bruce had commandeered (read: hot-wired) an old, dilapidated military ambulance to transport the still unconscious man while Tony and Steve had taken their respective vehicles back to the tower. So the first time that all three of them met up after the journey back was in the communal area.

It was like an atomic bomb going off.

"Why the hell didn't you tell us Stark?!"

Steve's angry voice cut through the air like a whip, precise and deadly, his usually placid blue eyes filled with a fury that no one had though him capable of. For brief second they could all see the real Captain America, the one who had fought in a war, who had seen good men go to their deaths. The billionaire was not a man easily cowed though and he drew himself up to his full height against the super-soldier, he was Iron Man, he would not yield or be intimidated.

"It was none of your fucking business." Tony replied bluntly refusing to break eye contact with the Captain.

"Bullshit!"

The expletive caught both the billionaire and physicist off guard and it was a testament to just how angry Steve was that he used such a vulgar word. Like Tony, he stood to his full height using his size advantage to cast the other two men in shadow.

"You are both members of this team that _makes_ it my business... Never mind the fact that he was... is my friend. You had no right to keep it from us, I'd expect this from you Stark but I would have though better from you Doctor Banner."

Bruce met Steve's glare without any fear or anger, he had absolutely no regrets about his actions and he would do the exact same thing again if the situation arose.

"Fury suggested that we be discreet." His voice was firm and held finality to it.

This seemed to be the tipping point and the Captain barked out a mirthless laugh.

"Fury? Since when does either of you two listen to anything Fury has to say?!"

Tony glowered and Bruce stood stoically beside his friend.

"Since for the first time in fucking forever he makes a valid point. And don't you dare try the guilt card with Bruce Capsicle. He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"But he still went along with it Stark... Once again caught up in something because of your mistakes. You never can leave well enough alone can you? And now you've dragged all of us into this mess." Steve spat, his words like venom.

"I never asked you to get involved soldier-boy." The billionaire murmured under his breath.

"It doesn't matter, you got me involved and now the Avengers are on clean-up duty for the billionaire playing at being super-hero... Again."

It was brief only there for a second or so but there was a flicker of hurt across Tony's face at Steve's callous words and the physicist caught it, the action making him frown. In the back of his mind he could feel the other guy beginning to stir at the perceived threat to his friend. This needed to stop. Now.

"Captain..." His voice was a deep growl "...The decision to help Tony was mine and mine alone. I had the opportunity to walk away and I chose not to. I am not some weak minded fool who blindly follows when beckoned, my friend needed help and I freely offered it so I do not appreciate the insinuation that I was coerced by Tony or by anyone else. Nor will I stand by while you tear him down for no reason other than a convenient target. I understand you're hurt right now but Tony is not the person you should be taking it out on."

Both the billionaire and the super-soldier turned to Bruce a look of shock on their faces; never had they heard the other man speak so bluntly or with such animosity in his voice. Tony shot him a look of gratitude once the shock faded while Steve looked somewhat sullen at the dressing down he'd just received. The super-soldier knew that the other man was right, he'd let his feelings of betrayal cloud his judgement and he'd lashed out at the nearest available target.

It was at this point that Natasha and Clint walked into the conversation and stopped dead at the tense atmosphere that surrounded the three men. The two assassins looked at one another and shook their heads, clearly unwilling to get involved in the argument. Instead they walked across to the large plush couch and crashed down. As if taking a leaf from their book Tony took the opportunity to excuse himself from the room with the intention of going for a shower and Bruce escaped down to the lab to check on their latest house guest. Steve however joined the assassins hoping to at least find some more agreeable company.

The widow shot him an unreadable look as he practically collapsed into a nearby chair, head falling into his hands. The blonde hadn't realised up until that point what a colossal headache he had, the stress and confusion at the situation finally taking its toll.

"I take it, it didn't go well?" Clint asked his voice unusually serious.

Steve merely groaned in reply, clutching his head tighter.

"That bad huh."

Natasha had remained silent throughout the whole exchange and what Steve, Tony and Bruce didn't know was that both she and Clint had been waiting behind the door listening to the argument between the three men. The animosity had been at a much higher level than usual and the fact that all three men had sounded ready to flay one another alive was unsettling, even to her. She reached forward and placed a cool hand on his shirt-clad shoulder.

"Steve what happened out there?"

The startlingly blue eyes met hers and for that brief second she could see the skinny, runty kid from Brooklyn staring back, out of his depth and out of his time. It was almost painful. Then a moment later the steel was back and so was the Steve she had come to know so well. He took a slow steadying breath to collect his thoughts before answering, talking, _arguing_ with Tony always left him a bit scatter-brained.

"Howard Stark."

Twin sets of eyebrows rose.

"Tony's old man? What does he have to do with this?" Clint asked clearly confused by the Captain's cryptic message.

"He's alive."

The Widow and Hawkeye were rendered speechless and just stared slack jawed at blonde's revelation. Under any other circumstances the super-soldier would have been proud to have garnered such a reaction but as the situation was it only filled him with regret, this whole scenario was a mess and it only promised to become more so as time passed. The assasins recovered quickly and shook their heads in disbelief, Natasha uttering the words that all of them were thinking.

"Vot der'mo!"*

Bruce practically ran into the medical bay, the blood pounding in his ears and the Hulk pushing from behind his eyes. How _dare_ Steve speak like that to them, to lay blame where it wasn't due and make such unfounded and untrue insinuations. They really hadn't wanted to keep this whole debacle from them but there really hadn't been any need to involve the rest of the team, he and Tony had been in full control of the situation. He took a deep steadying breath forcing the anger back down into its cage and willing his heart rate to slow, the last thing that anyone needed was the other guy on the scene. After a few minutes the green had receeded and Bruce felt somewhat centered, at least enough to do what was needed of him.

Brown eyes gazed sidewards toward the man lying comatose in the medical cot.

Tony really was the image of his father, there was absolutely no mistaking that the two men were related to one another but there was something wrong about seeing the familiar features on another person and it made a bitter taste well up in his mouth. He wanted to hate this man, wanted to hate the pain he had put his friend through, yet at the same time he was immensely curious about the older man. Howard Stark had been a great innovator of his time, apparently at the cost of family ties and so Bruce was curious to know his reasons because they could possibly prevent Stark senior from having a new asshole ripped by more than one person. There were quite a few people who were protective over Tony Stark's well being.

Sighing the physicist realized that he'd better get to work; he could deal with those questions and his own feelings toward those who abuse, another time.

With the care and precision expected of him Bruce moved to the bedside and began to examine the other man. Back in the military facility he'd only had the opportunity for a quick exam to ensure that it was safe to move the elder Stark but now he had the time and the limitless resources he was going to do a thorough job of it. He started with a full body examination and found a few recently healed injuries on the man's body.

_How very odd._

Cryo-sleep was supposed to completely halt a body's functions and according to the almost non-exsistant records the man has been locked in there since the day he'd had his accident. If the cryo-tube had been faulty then Howard would be dead already, old age having taken it toll so that couldn't be the reason for the healing. Bruce's brow furrowed utterly perplexed by the completely unheard of conundrum he'd been faced with. The only idea he could come up with was that someone had developed something similar to the serum he'd been working on for R & D but that was highly improbable the technology to do such a thing had only recently been developed.

He had to delve deeper into this, it could be of massive benefit to medical science.

He acted with care and professionalism taking all manner of samples from Howard, constantly aware of the man's comfort level even though he wished he wasn't. Throughout the whole procedure the man didn't stir but Bruce hadn't expected him to, he honestly didn't expect the man to remotely regain consciousness for at least a few days. He set up the analysis of the samples and then utterly exhausted from everything that had happened he crashed out on the simple fold out cot Tony had installed after finding him sleeping at his desk one too many times. Already half asleep by the time his head hit the pillow he mumbled a request to JARVIS for the AI to wake him up in a few hours if nothing happened in the mean time.

In the penthouse Tony was feeling similarly aggrivated. For the first time in a long time he was glad that Pepper was away, he didn't want her to see him like this, a broken shell of his usual self. He picked up the nearest decanter and poured a large helping into a glass, eyeing the amber liquid with a mixture of longing and disdain, dark eyes reflected back.

 _His_ dark eyes.

A sudden wave of anger overcame him and he threw the glass across the room with all of his strength. It smashed against the stonewashed wall the liquid dripping down onto one of the marble sculptures Pepper had insisted on buying in order to make him seem more 'cultured'. He almost laughed at the thought; he'd never been particularly interested in culture and why Pepper persisted with it he'd never know, in that respect she was a lot like his mother.

Tony grimaced, throughout this whole clusterfuck his mind had been focused on Howard and no one but Howard. Not once had his thoughts strayed to his mother and now that they had it was like he was back in Afghanistan having open heart surgery again, the pain was agonizing and all consuming.

Why had Howard been allowed to survive and not her? It was completely unfair and he was well aware of how childish it sounded but in Tony's mind it was the absolute truth of the matter. Maria had been good, not perfect by any means but she had always put her family first, no matter how vile, unruly or unbearable they were being.

The memories flooded back now, released from the mental box they had been locked away in for the last twenty five years.

He remembered the last time he had seen her on the day of the accident, her lips pursed in disapproval and eyes filled with regret. He could feel the sting of his cheek where she had struck him; he'd deserved it, he'd been drunk and mouthing off at Howard he couldn't exactly remember what he had been saying but it had been nasty. Then after that he'd gone to strike the man and his Mom had just moved between them and slapped him across the face.

She'd never struck him before that moment and he could still picture the smug look of triumph on Howard's face.

After that things got a little blurry, he'd gone on the bender to end all benders and even to this day he was surprized he was still breathing after the varied and excessive amount of 'substances' he'd imbibed. The next memory he had was Obidiah finding him a cheap motel room still wasted off his face and telling him that his parents were dead.

He stayed in that motel room for three days after that.

The billionaire came back from his memories blinking back tears, tears that still refused to be shed even after all this time. It was the one thing his father had drilled into him; Stark men were strong and never showed their emotions.

"Sir, Doctor Banner is requesting the Avengers' assistance."

Tony frowned. "What's the situation JARVIS?"

"It appears that your guest has regained consciousness Sir."

Jaw clenched tightly he muttered the only word that sprung to mind.

"Fuck."

~End Chapter Five~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * This literally mean 'Oh Shit!' in russian.
> 
> OMG I had so much trouble with this chapter... I'm just not good at writing arguments -_-*. Let me know what you think.


	6. Chapter Six.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Bruce makes a few discoveries, Clint plays amateur psychologist and Tony and Howard have their first meeting in twenty five years.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TADAH! I give you an update! Thanks for all the love peeps!

"...Ctor Banner, Doctor Banner."

Bruce woke to the sound of JARVIS's dulcet tones his head groggy and feeling full of cotton. He groaned and rolled over eyes seeking out the digital clock across the lab; just how long had he been out? His eyes zoned in on the bright red numbers and he bit back a noise of frustration, fifty-seven minutes; fifty-seven God-damned minutes, the AI better have an amazingly good reason for waking him or he was going to ask Tony to do some 'maintenance.'

"What is it JARVIS?" He asked, voice rough from sleep.

"You asked to be informed if a situation arose."

This caught the physicist's attention and it was if a switch had been flicked in his brain, the grogginess and lethargy instantly banished, replaced by alertness and rampant curiosity.

"What's going on?"

"It appears that your patient is regaining consciousness."

Bruce wondered for the briefest of moments if the AI was joking but then he remembered that a sense of humor hadn't been included in his programming.

"What?!" He croaked out.

"According to the vital readings and the increase in brain activity it appears that your patient is about to regain consciousness."

_Oh holy fuck._

How was this even possible? Even under normal circumstances it took at least forty-eight hours for a person to wake from a cryo-sleep, at least that is what he'd come to understand from working on the anti-atrophy serum. For a person to regain consciousness after around twenty hours was completely unheard of and somewhat worrying. He clambered out of the cot rushing into the adjoining room and it was just as JARVIS had said, the man was starting to wake up.

"JARVIS can you send a message to the rest of the team that I may need assistance."

"The message has been sent to all available Avengers Doctor Banner." The AI replied.

"Thank you JARVIS."

The doctor set to work and examined the older man again; even in the space of an hour the man had progressed far beyond what was considered normal for a human, in fact this rapid healing was more reminiscent of... Him. That thought sent a shudder down his spine and Bruce was suddenly glad he had requested assistance, his gaze flickering to the samples still being processed.

On the bed the elder Stark was moaning softly, eyes flickering behind the closed lids and hands clenching in the cool cotton sheets. There was a moment where the man appeared to stop breathing and then the flickering eyes stilled and shot open. For the briefest of moments the physicist froze, pinned to the spot by the familiar yet at the same time completely foreign stare.

"Where?" The man's voice was crackly with disuse.

Bruce snapped out of his daze.

"You're in New York Mr. Stark."

The dark eyes narrowed in suspicion as Howard propped himself up on his elbows to get a better vantage point, the distrust obvious in his body language. His gaze swept around the room taking in the unfamiliar machinery and then zeroed in on the door that lay just beyond Bruce.

"Where am I really?" Stark's voice was getting stronger by the second.

The physicist tried not to bristle at the accusation in the man's tone and answered as calmly as he could.

"You're in New York Mr. Stark."

"Liar, I've been to New York and there is nowhere like this in the city. So are you going to tell me the truth you scum bag or do I have to make you."

There was no hint of hesitation in the older man's tone and Bruce didn't believe for a second that the man wasn't serious in his threat. He knew that to ninety-nine percent of people he looked like a complete pushover and easy prey but he had dealt with far worse things than an elderly ex-billionaire.

"I told you Mr. Stark you are in New York, I do not make a habit of lying and I do not intend to start now." He replied tersely.

The other man didn't look remotely appeased by his answer and the physicist could see the cogs working behind Howard's eyes, frantically searching for an answer.

"Let me the fuck out of here. Right. Now..."

Well that explained where Tony got his foul mouth from.

"Bruce... You okay there big guy?" Tony's voice sounded from behind the shut door.

Thank the deities for small mercies.

"Yeah... I'm fine; our guest however is awake and rather angry."

Bruce could have sworn he heard his friend mutter 'no change there then' under his breath before the door slid open allowing Clint and Tony access to the room. On the bed the older Stark's face darkened, although there was flicker of surprise in his eyes as Tony came into view but it quickly disappeared and the man was back on the attack.

"I see you called in your little minions _Bruce_ , hoping to intimidate me were you? Well it won't work, you won't use me and when I get out of here I'll make you pay."

Whether it was some memory that triggered inside his brain or the fact that his 'old man' was threatening those he sort of considered his family Tony didn't know but the next thing he knew he was seeing red and was flying across the room.

The sound of his fist hitting the old bastards jaw was the sweetest music he'd ever heard.

"TONY!"

Bruce's voice rang out through the red fog but he ignored it completely, reveling in the hedonistic lull of pure violence. He continued to whale on the man lying in the bed, the crunch of bone beneath his fist oddly satisfying in ways he couldn't describe. It wasn't until he felt Clint's arms around his chest pulling him away that he started to regain his senses but he truly couldn't find it in him to feel any regret at his actions. The bastard had deserved it for threatening what was his and it had been long overdue.

"Clint get Tony out of here before he makes things worse." Bruce sounded exasperated and he pinched the bridge of his nose.

The archer complied dragging the billionaire from the room, who was still fighting against the restraints. Outside the medical bay Clint let go of Tony and let out a deep sigh.

"Feel better Stark?" He asked, folding his arms across his chest and blocking the door with his body.

The billionaire straightened out his t-shirt and gave a vicious smile.

"Not really but the bastard deserved it."

Clint couldn't really blame the guy, he'd read Stark's file and knew that there were certainly some unresolved daddy issues there; how couldn't there be when Howard Stark was your father. But the way Tony had reacted and the sheer lack of remorse at lamping his father made him think that there was a lot the files had missed out. The lack of control had been disconcerting and while he knew that the billionaire liked to fire on all cylinders he always had some modicum of control, there, when he'd attacked it was like he hadn't even been there.

"So... What was all that about?"

For the briefest of moments the billionaire looked ashamed at his outburst but the next second the cock-sure Tony Stark was back with a vengeance. A perfectly groomed brow rose in response to the archer's question, his mouth set in a firm line and Clint resisted the urge to groan. Honestly why were people so difficult?

"Okay, Okay... I get it Shell-Head; none of my business. I know when to take a hint. But Stark, for what it's worth you know we're here for you right? You're a member of this team and that means we look out for one another no matter what."

For a moment Hawkeye thought that the billionaire was about to rip him a new one but then the shoulders sunk low and Tony looked more worn than Clint had ever seen him.

"I appreciate the gesture Bird-Brain but I'm afraid that I'm gonna have to decline that wondrous offer of show and tell." His voice was cold and defensive.

The archer fought down a scowl and uncrossed his arms trying to use his body language to show he wasn't a threat.

"Listen Stark... Tony, I hate to repeat myself but I'm gonna just this once. Talk to someone about this, don't care who it is but don't let whatever this is eat you up inside."

"Yeah, yeah lets all make fun of poor little Tony who can't even deal with his family issues." Tony replied sarcastically, air quoting the word issues.

Clint grit his teeth together and forced himself to keep a neutral look on his face, honestly the man could try the patience of a saint.

"Do you think any one of us has a right to mock you Stark? We've all got issues and you know it... So ask yourself this why haven't _you_ used that information against us?"

Tony found himself unable to come up with a retort to that. He knew that Clint was right, there wasn't a single member of the team who didn't have some kind of emotional baggage and he did indeed know about the vast majority of it. He had more than enough ammo to turn every single member of the Avengers into a gibbering mess if he'd wanted.

But he didn't.

It wasn't a case of not having to do it; it was more because he didn't _want_ to do it. He actually gave a shit about (admittedly some more than others) and respected this rag-tag group of people who had forced their way into his life over a year ago. Apparently to the extent where he was conscious of their feelings and that thought made him want to pull a face, because… Ew feelings. So if he felt this way... Did that mean?

"You guys _actually_ give a shit." There was a hint of wonder in his voice.

It was a statement not a question and Hawkeye nodded in reply even though it looked like it pained him to admit it.

"Took you long enough to figure it out bolts for brains... But yeah we do, just don't y'know spread it around. I'd like to keep my head where it is thanks."

The billionaire felt a genuine chuckle bubble in his chest for the first time since this whole situation had been brought to light and he patted the archer on the shoulder.

"I suppose I can keep your little secret Barton, although it would be funny to see Natasha's reaction."

Clint mock paled and shrugged off Tony's hands but there was a wicked grin on his lips.

"Try it Stark and I'll let her know about those 'secret' camera's you have hidden in the gym."

This time it was the billionaire's turn to pale but he brushed it off with practiced ease and Hawkeye was pleased to see a much more recognizable Tony back in control.

"You say potato and I say potatoe." He crowed hands doing most of the talking for him.

The archer rolled his eyes but smirked none the less.

"I say secret cameras and Nat will say secret cameras; so let's work this whole thing out."

The two men burst into laughter at the complete and utter lameness of the joke and Tony had to admit he was relieved to have some of the normalcy back. After finding Howard and all that shit with Steve it was nice to just be able to just forget it for five minutes and shoot the breeze. The moment was broken seconds later when Clint returned to his usual crass self.

"Uh no offense dude but you kinda smell."

The billionaire glared half-heartedly and did a tentative sniff, okay so maybe bird-brain was right but he certainly wasn't going to let Clint _know_ that he was right. Things like that went to a man's head. _Okay, time to go on the offensive_. He shot the man an evil grin and draped himself across the archer's shoulders.

"What's the matter Merida? My manly stench too much for your delicate senses?" He teased.

Hawkeye pulled a face and pushed the billionaire off trying to put as much distance between himself and Tony as possible.

"That 'manly stench' as you put it is enough to even gross out the Hulk, so I'd say there is nothing delicate about my senses what so ever." Clint retorted, wrinkling his nose distastefully.

The billionaire winked, sauntering down the hallway and throwing up a half hearted wave as a farewell, he didn't rush because now that the archer had mentioned it he felt absolutely disgusting but of course he wasn't going to let Clint know that.

"Whatever you say princess."

 

Bruce just stared at the door and shook his head; of all the things he'd been expecting Tony flipping out and attacking his father certainly wasn't one of them, he turned back to the man on the bed who was rubbing his face and wincing. With a deep sigh the physicist walked over to one of the containment freezers and pulled out an ice pack.

"Here this will help." He said, tossing it casually to the man.

It landed on Stark's lap and the older man glared at the pack disdainfully before picking it up and dropping it in the waste paper basket next to his bed. Bruce shrugged, he honestly hadn't expected the other man to accept his help but he'd kind of been hoping he was wrong.

"Suit yourself Mr. Stark but I'm not here to cause you any harm."

There was a dry, sarcastic laugh from the elder "No, you'll just get one of your henchmen to do it for you."

Bruce allowed himself an indulgent smile, it wasn't often he had the opportunity to play the asshole card but with the day he was having he could certainly see the appeal right now. In the back of his mind the Hulk secretly agreed, this 'puny old man' was starting to annoy him. He stepped forward and looked Howard straight in the eye not flinching when the man glared back.

"Listen to me Mr. Stark and listen well, I do not need any 'henchmen' as you so inaccurately put it to cause you any harm, I am more than capable of doing that myself and it would make what my _team-mate_ just did to you look like the teddy-bears picnic. But so far I haven't, out of respect of my team-mate's wishes. Make no qualms about it when the opportunity arises I will let you see my angers full strength." Bruce spoke with utter conviction.

Howard maintained eye contact but the physicist could see the uncertainty in the older man's eyes and secretly he felt pleased about that. Howard Stark wasn't the only one who could be a dick and it was about time he knew it.

"I seriously doubt you could do much _Bruce_. You look as if a feather would blow you over." There was a slight waver in the man's voice.

Bruce couldn't stop the rusty laugh escaping his lips; honestly did this guy ever give up?

"Think what you might _Howard_ but you of all people should know that looks can be deceiving."

With that he left the room, taking extra care to triple encode the lock on the medical room's door, he certainly wasn't going to take any chances considering who he was dealing with here. The last thing they needed was to have a pissed of Howard Stark running around causing havoc, one Stark alpha male was more than enough to deal with as it was. If only there was someone who could talk to the older man, make him see reason… Bruce groaned and slapped a hand to his forehead blaming the lack of sleep on not seeing the solution sooner.

Of course there was someone Howard would trust, he'd spent years of his life searching for him after all. Now all he had to do was hope that Steve would respond.

"JARVIS can you inform Captain Rogers that I need to speak with him at his earliest convenience."

"Of course Doctor Banner." The AI replied.

Still grumbling over his lack of foresight Bruce sat himself down at the desk and pulled up what analysis of the samples had been completed thus far. His measured gaze swept down results and the physicist felt the breath catch in his throat as his mind tried to put the pieces together.

"What the hell?"

This shouldn't be possible but somehow, somehow it was.

~End Chapter Six~


	7. Chapter Seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Steve and Howard meet at last and Bruce discovers some interesting things about their guest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  __  
>  **So. Much. Love!!!**  
>  You guys are all awesome!!
> 
> But UGH I actually had to do research _science_ for this chapter even though there is only a little of it in here.
> 
> Apologies for my crappy brain in advance XD

Steve pulled into the garage feeling a lot calmer than he had when he'd left; he'd needed to escape the tower for a short while to clear his head and try to wrap his brain around just what the hell was going on. Suffice it to say he'd only really managed to do one of the two but he was sure that the other would come with time. With his bike parked in the usual spot he pulled of his helmet and steeled himself for what was waiting for him inside.

What he hadn't been expecting was to be accosted the second he walked into the elevator.

"Captain Rogers, Doctor Banner requested your presence in the medical lab at the earliest possible convenience."

JARVIS's mechanical voice echoed through the empty elevator and the super-soldier felt himself sigh. He hadn't really wanted to face the doctor so soon after their last confrontation, the scolding he'd received still making him feel slightly bitter, no matter how right the other man had been in his assumptions. But he also knew that Bruce wouldn't ask for him without just cause; so whatever it was it must be important.

"Let Doctor Banner know I'll be there asap."

"I shall convey the message."

Before heading down to meet the physicist Steve quickly stopped off at his room to change into something more comfortable and then headed directly to the lab, figuring there was no time quite like the present. He approached the lab with some trepidation but quickly beat back those feelings, he had been asked here for a reason; he wasn't about to be fed to the lions or a Hulk.

He pressed the access panel.

The door slid open and Steve walked inside his eyes adjusting to the near darkness of the lab, the only visible light was spilling from the multiple monitors that Bruce was attentively scrutinizing apparently oblivious to the other man's arrival. The super-soldier allowed himself a small smile, some things never changed.

He gave a quiet but obvious cough.

The physicist started at the noise and turned toward Steve a look of relief clearly visible on his features.

"Captain."

"Doctor."

The exchange was brief and to point and then Bruce turned back to the screens beckoning the blond over. Steve obliged and walked over marvelling at the sheer amount of information being displayed on the screens, he didn't understand any of it but that didn't mean he couldn't be impressed. The two men lapsed into contemplative silence.

"So... JARVIS said you wanted to see me."

The physicist nodded clearly not paying full attention, completely captivated by the streams of information dancing before his eyes. Steve fought the urge to roll his eyes, honestly when either he or Tony got into 'work mode' it was like the rest of the world melted away.

"So, what did you want to see me for?" His tone was slightly impatient.

Bruce seemed to finally realise that he was being a tad rude and pulled his gaze away from the screen.

"Uh... Sorry. Well... Um...I need your help."

Steve's eyebrow rose and Bruce barreled onwards.

"It's to do with our guest..." There was a definite hint of nervousness in his voice and the blonde frowned.

"What about him?"

"He woke up."

Blue eyes widened and Steve felt his heart stop for the briefest of moments, Howard was... awake? From what he gleaned from both Stark and Banner's science-babble back at the base it should have taken him at least a few days to come around, was something wrong?

"Is he okay...? Did something happen?" The super-soldier couldn't quite keep the worry out of his voice.

The physicist frowned and shook his head.

"No, no, he's fine... Better than fine to be honest he's healing at an accelerated rate which I've been trying to get to the bottom of and... Never mind, it's not important right now. What is important is that he doesn't trust anyone and is acting hostile, I figured a friendly face might make him more comfortable and... receptive."

Steve couldn't quite contain the chuckle of amusement, despite Bruce's glare, at the thought of Howard giving everyone a hard time. He'd been smart mouthed and mule-headed back in the war and he seriously doubted those particular aspects of the man's personality had changed that much. If anything the passage of time would have made them more prominent.

"So you want me to charm him into submission?"

The physicist couldn't help but roll his eyes at the comment but he nodded in affirmation.

"Yes, something like that; I'm not asking for a miracle... I just want him to understand that we're not his enemies."

The super-soldier sighed; the problem was Bruce _was_ asking for a miracle. When Howard got an idea in his head there was very little anything or anyone could do to dissuade him from it. This was not going to be easy.

"I will try my best... But you've seen how he is."

"I have Captain ... And I... Appreciate that you came down here..."

The awkwardness in the physicist's voice is obvious and the look in his eyes makes Steve frown. The other man had honestly not expected him to answer his call and although he understood why it still smarted slightly. At the end of the day they were still Avengers; team-mates and he wouldn't betray that trust for anything, he had already lost too much and he would fight tooth and nail to see that he or any of the others didn't lose any more. And right now that meant him being the bigger man.

"Doctor..." the soldier swallowed past the lump in his throat "About earlier... I wanted to apologize you were right in what you said..."

Bruce held up his hand stopping the flow of words.

"You were angry, Tony was angry, I was... Well not angry enough..."

Steve felt his mouth twitch in amusement; Bruce was making a Hulk joke? Would wonders never cease?

"... The point is we all may have said some things we may regret but the important thing now is not our differences; it's the man in that room over there... " The physicist's jaw clenched as he spoke about Howard "...We can work out our differences later, the task at hand takes priority."

The brown eyes gazed sideways at the reinforced door and the blonde nodded in response, signalling that he was ready. Bruce stood and walked over to the entryway, hastily typing in the various key-codes that were keeping the door locked from the outside. The door slid open and the physicist leaned against the open doorway arms crossed against his chest.

"Mr. Stark I have a visitor for you."

There was a low dark chuckle from within the room and Steve felt his chest ache in familiarity, it was older,more world-weary but there was no mistaking who the voice belonged to.

"I hope they are more accommodating than your last visitors _Bruce_." The elder Stark snapped and threw

Bruce shot the super-soldier an exasperated stare as if to say ' _See what I've been dealing with?_ ' Steve however was having a hard time regulating his breathing, it felt as though his chest was seizing up and it was taking every ounce of his enhanced strength to suck in even a single breath. This was exactly what he'd been hoping for... Wishing for, a link to his past that wasn't just a dusty relic in a museum but something real, tangible.

"I'm sure they will Mr. Stark, Captain if you would."

The blonde took this as his cue and stepped forward into the doorway a look of mingled shock and relief on his face. The man looked a little rough around the edges and there were a few yellowing bruises on his face but he was awake and alive. On the bed for the first time since he had awoken Howard was actually dumbstruck and he had to rub his eyes to make sure that he wasn't seeing things. Behind them Bruce excused himself knowing that his presence was no longer needed.

"Steve? Is that really you?"

The super-soldier smiled; striding over to the bed and grasped the man by the shoulders, pulling him into a brief hug before stepping back.

"Yeah it's me Howard... Long time no see."

There was a moment of elation on the older man's face but then realization seemed to slip in and his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"No this isn't possible, you died... You died when the plane went down..."

"It might be hard to believe Howard but I didn't die. I landed in the ice and froze but the serum it kept me alive and then they found me and thawed me out."

The man was struggling now trying to get away from the 'fraudster' and Steve felt his heart twist, just what had happened to make Howard this distrusting of people? Or had he always been like this and he'd never seen it because he'd been considered one of those confidants, he shook his head trying to will away the hurt at the accusation that he was lying.

"Howard it really is me... I can prove it..." There was a moments pause "...Did Peggy ever tell you the last thing that I said on the plane... before it... it crashed." Steve's voice became a little distant.

Slowly the man nodded eyes glazed as his mind sunk back into the past, to a friend long forgotten.

"I told her to have the band play something slow..." The words were filled with seventy years worth of pain and longing.

The dark eyes went wide as cold reality sunk in, that this really was Steve Rogers. The skinny kid from Brooklyn he'd help make into the worlds first super-soldier, the man he'd flown into enemy territory on a whim and the man he'd thought had plummeted to his death after stopping the Red Skull's nefarious plan. It really was Steve.

"I... It really is you." His voice was light and full of wonder.

"Yes it is."

"I can trust you right?"

The distrust was still there in Howard's voice but at least it wasn't aimed at him anymore, he nodded in response to the man's question.

"Then can you tell me where the hell I am?"

Steve repressed a small sigh, he wasn't exactly sure how much he should tell the man. He remembered when he came around how difficult it had been to adjust to the new world he'd been thrust into after being out of the loop for so long, he didn't want to put his friend through the same trauma he'd been through. But Howard had a massive advantage over him, he'd at least seen some of the future maybe this wouldn't be as big of a shock for him. Deciding that honesty was probably the best way to go about it he took a deep breath.

"You're in New York."

Again there was that look of suspicion but it melted away when he remembered that it was Steve who was telling him this not _Bruce_ or one of his flunkies but it didn't look anything like the New York he remembered; the sky-line was all wrong and he told Steve so. The super-solider's face turned sad and he gazed out of the window.

"Trust me it's New York... It's just been a long time since you've seen it."

_A long time?_

"Steve what year is it?" There was an angry edge to his voice.

Again the blonde sighed but turned to look the man straight in the eye.

"2013."

And all Howard could do was gape.

* * *

Bruce backed away from the door content to let Steve do what he was best at; getting people to trust him, because he had worried other than his friends father on his mind. Well that wasn't entirely true; Howard was at the heart of his current worries but the less time he spent around the man the happier he'd be. Unfortunately it didn't seem that fate wanted to play nicely, he sat back down at the computer combing over the data again and sighed.

"Analysis complete."

_Finally..._

The physicist grimaced as he asked the AI to give him the run down on the data.

"Blood work shows an array of enhanced antibodies and immune system that is not natural to the patient..."

Well Bruce had already surmised that much from the basic blood work he'd done, Howard's white blood cell count was through the roof and they seemed to be unusually resistant to most antigens.

"There have also been a large number of nano-mechanical organisms found within the blood sample although exact purpose is unknown and will require further analysis."

Nano-machines? Bruce could feel a migraine beginning to build behind his eyes this; was all getting more complicated by the second and although he didn't really want to ask he knew he was going to need Tony's help with this. The billionaire had a lot more experience with Nano-technology than he did, by which he meant that the engineer at least had some experience with Nano-technology.

"JARVIS, what about the DNA analysis."

There was a whir as the AI sprang back to life.

"DNA analysis shows that patients DNA has been reconfigured on multiple occasions with various genetic markers, nearest known likeness in configuration: Captain Steve Rogers aka Captain America."

Now _that_ he hadn't been expecting, Howard had been made into a super-soldier? For what purpose? The man was easily hitting his sixties even now; it made no sense whatsoever to give him a version of the serum. It did at the very least explain how the man had been able to heal in cryo-stasis and even though that small mystery had been solved (And what an answer he'd gotten) it opened up a complete can of worms. Who had done this to Howard and why? What on earth where the Nano-machines doing in his blood stream? Why had he even been saved in the first place? Bruce groaned and rubbed his eyes, he was beyond exhausted and there was still so much to do.

With a sigh the physicist stood and saved the information he'd accumulated thus far on to the tablet Tony had gifted him with for his last birthday and tried to swallow the anxiety he was feeling. He wasn't looking forward to explaining to his friend that someone had been messing around with his father's DNA but Tony needed to know the full scope of the situation. Even if he wasn't on good terms with the man ( _understatement of the century there Banner)_ he knew that the billionaire was fiercely protective over those he considered 'his' and Tony wouldn't have gone after his father if he didn't fall into that category on at least some level. He would not take someone fucking with Howard lightly and heaven help when they found out the party responsible because it _was_ going to happen. If he knew Tony half as well as he thought he did he knew the other man would make it happen.

Resolved to yet again not getting any sleep the Doctor headed toward the penthouse, ignoring the twisting of his gut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Comments make me happy!!!_


	8. Chapter Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Bruce tells Tony the truth, Tony shares a childhood memory and a plan is hatched by the 'Science Bro's'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys are all officially the shizzle! The comments and kudos have all brought such joy to my day. *Glomps freaking everyone*
> 
> Thank you so, SO much.
> 
> Warnings: Tony's mouth, Howard being a dick, Bruce worrying, some very minor violence and Um... Well an abusive situation involving a child. You have been warned.

Daddy Dearest:

Chapter 8:

Bruce hurried to the penthouse clutching the tablet close to his chest eager to get this whole encounter over sooner rather than later. He really was dreading this but he knew that deep down this was the right thing to do; that Tony deserved the truth instead of yet another veil of lies and half-truths. Bruce just wished he wasn't the bearer of bad news... Again.

The elevator doors slid open with barely a sound and the physicist stepped inside trying to ignore the trapped feeling as the doors closed on him. He'd never been a fan of elevators even before his accident and now with the Hulk around he was even less so. Bruce distracted himself by going over what he'd gleaned from the blood and DNA analysis and tried to figure out just how to break it to the billionaire without causing an incident.

The physicist snorted at that thought, like _that_ was ever going to happen.

Before long the elevator slowed to a halt and Bruce let out a breath he wasn't aware he'd been holding as he stepped out into the expansive apartment, that was silent and completely dark.

The Doctor frowned. "JARVIS where is Tony?"

The crisp British voice broke through the gloom.

"Sir is out on the upper balcony Doctor Banner."

For some reason this made Bruce's stomach churn unpleasantly and he hesitantly voiced his next question.

"Has he been drinking?"

"No Doctor Banner, although Sir has certainly been contemplating it by my observations."

This honestly shocked the physicist and he couldn't quite tell if it was a good omen or a bad omen. Drinking had always been one of Tony's coping mechanisms; as far as he was aware and the fact he wasn't doing so now meant one of two things.

Either A: he was coping with this far, _far_ better than anyone expected or B: that particular coping mechanism wasn't helping him cope any more.

Bruce really hoped it was option A, although he seriously doubted it.

Somewhat cautiously he made his way up to the upper balcony and moved quietly, but not silently to stand beside the contemplative billionaire. Although Tony didn't possess a large, green and angry alter ego that didn't mean he liked being sneaked up on. After a few moments the dark gaze flicked to the side catching Bruce's own and the physicist could see the exhaustion weighing the other man down.

"Come to scold me about earlier Banner." Tony's voice was tight and he turned his gaze back to the city below.

"No, why would I?" Bruce shook his head an honest look on his face.

"Oh..."

The physicist frowned "Why? Were you expecting me too?"

The dark head bobbed ever so slightly.

"Yeah, kinda, I did just punch your patient in the face after all... Don't you have that hypocrites oath or something." There was still a dark edge to the engineer's voice.

Bruce didn't bother to hide the quiet snort of laughter at Tony's comment; he knew full well of his friends distrust of medical professionals, a feeling he wholeheartedly shared. However the tone of voice of Tony's voice worried him, he'd heard it too many times before to not know what it meant and where it could lead if left unchecked.

"I think you might have still be under the delusion that I'm _actually_ a medical doctor Tony, I'm not obliged to uphold the hippocratic oath but I will admit hypocritic does seem to be more appropriate."

There was a hint of snark in his voice and Bruce hoped it would jostle Tony out of the melancholic mood he was in before he wandered too far down that path. The billionaire however shrugged off the comment still apparently lost in his own little world, frowning as the world below him passed on by.

"So what did you come for Bruce?" The question was blunt.

The physicist's nerves seemed to amplify ten fold and he had to take a deep steadying breath, he knew this was not going to be pretty.

"Um... Well, I need to talk to you..."

Finally Tony tore his gaze away from the bright lights and loud noises of the city below, he took in Bruce's agitated expression and nervous stance and knew what this was about.

"About Howard, right?"

Because he absolutely refused to _actually_ call him _father_ out loud.

"Uh... Yeah, listen there is no easy way to say this but whoever had your... Er Howard in that cryo-chamber well... "

The billionaire raised an eyebrow.

"Spit it out Bruce."

"They messed with his DNA." The words came out in a rush.

Time stretched out between the two men and Tony's face remained completely impassive as he processed the information; then as if a light switched on his brain the billionaire's mouth drew into a hard line, his eyes turning steely. Bruce felt a shudder run through him at the cold fury he could feel radiating from the other man.

"What?"

The physicist had to take a deep breath before continuing, he could feel the Hulk reacting to Tony's anger and he had to reassure his mental house guest that there was no threat to them; that Tony wasn't angry at them. At least he thought the billionaire wasn't angry at them; it was nearly impossible to predict the mans moods at the moment.

"They did something to his DNA Tony... I think it was a variant on the 'Super Soldier' serum they gave Steve but I can't figure out why..."

Bruce's voice was quiet as he explained to the billionaire what he'd found and he handed the tablet with the data to the other man so he could see for himself. Tony's dark eyes scanned the data never once losing the steely edge and the physicist watched the clenching and un-clenching of Tony's jaw as he absorbed what had been brought before him. He could see it written plainly over the billionaire's face; the hurt, the anger, all emotions that Bruce was familiar with but there were others as well guilt, loathing and something Bruce couldn't quite put a name on.

More importantly Tony was completely silent.

"Tony...?"

The billionaire remained silent for a moment longer before turning and heading back toward the glass door that segregated the balcony from the penthouse. He stopped for a second before drawing back his fist and punching the reinforced glass with all of his might. Horrified by the show of violence Bruce rushed forward and caught his friend's arm as he pulled it back for another blow, holding it in a tight grip.

"TONY!" The shock was evident in his voice.

The other man seemed to be completely trapped in his own little world, completely oblivious to everything that was going on around him. The dark eyes were caught in turmoil and the stared blankly at something that wasn't visible to Bruce but all to visible to Tony. After a few moments he seemed to regain his senses and began to struggle against the vice like grip the physicist had him caught in, snarling like a wounded animal.

"Let me go Banner!"

Bruce shook his head. "Not until I know you're not going to hurt yourself again." He could already see the bruises forming on the man's knuckles.

There was a moment where it seemed Tony was going to continue fighting but then he just slumped against his friend sighing deeply.

"I won't Bruce, just let me go... Please."

Whether it was the softly spoken plea or the look of sheer defeat on Tony's face Bruce wasn't entirely sure but he let go of the billionaire's arm and took a step backwards. The two men stood still and in silence watching one another, feeling out the situation until finally the billionaire spoke.

"I just don't know what I should be feeling right now... I hated him, _hate_ him but when I think about someone pulling that kind shit on him I just see red and I don't know why. It's so fucking aggravating to have these messed up, conflicting... " here Tony sneered slightly " _Emotions_ ; almost makes me wish the old bastard was still considered dead and I could go on loathing him in peace."

Bruce stood there awkwardly fidgeting as Tony spoke; he'd honestly been expecting this but it still didn't lessen his level of discomfort at the whole situation.

"Tony... This is a pretty unorthodox situation, you're allowed to feel conflicted..."

"No! No I'm not!..." The billionaire cut in harshly "I don't _do_ conflicted. Especially not about _him!_ He made my childhood a living hell and the second he had the chance he had me shipped off to a fucking boarding school. He didn't give, doesn't give a shit about me; he never did, why should I give a shit about him?"

The physicist took of his glasses and rubbed the lenses clean in a calming circular motion.

"I'd say because he's your father but I realize how horribly hypocritical that sounds considering my own experiences of fatherhood. To be honest I really have no answers for you Tony, all I can do is offer an ear when you need it."

The words were calm and controlled and they seemed to deflate all of Tony's rage and confusion. The billionaire hated that Bruce could so easily rationalize his arguments and at the same time not patronize him, it was infuriating but at the same time he was grateful for it. He let out a deep sigh and closed his eyes, running a hand through his hair.

"Do you want to know what my earliest memory of him is? I must have been about four or five..."

* * *

_The small, scrawny figure of a young child snuck down the corridor, wide brown eyes darting around and gleaming in the soft light. Seeing that the coast is clear the kid smirks broadly and darts forward through the open door._

_A wonderland of mechanical gizmos and engineering brilliance sprawled before him and the young Anthony Edward Stark couldn't help but gape in wonder._

_"Alwight! Lets do this!" He crowed full of confidence._

_The four year old ran forward and began rummaging through the piles of electronics in search of the elusive piece of circuitry he needed to complete the motherboard he'd been working on. He knew he didn't have long, his dad was due back any second and if he was caught there would be hell to pay._

_"Come on, come on where awe you?"_

_The door to the lab slammed open and the intimidating figure of Howard Stark stormed in. Immediately Tony dived under the nearest table and drew his knees up to his chest trying to make himself as small as possible. Howard sat down at his work desk stinking of the grown up drink he always guzzled and Tony felt himself gag and unfortunately for him, rather audibly._

_There was a moment where everything seemed to go silent and then a large hand reached down and grabbed the child by the collar, hauling him from underneath the desk._

_"What have I told you about coming in here!?"_

_Howard voice boomed through the lab and the young Tony shook in the man's vice like grip, the color draining from his face._

_"I... T-thought... You could help me... D-daddy..."_

_The mans's grip around Tony's collar tightened and he glared at the child squirming in his grasp._

_"So that gives you permission to come in here when I'm not around?..." He sat the child on the work desk, still not letting go "Empty your pockets."_

_Fear swept through Tony and he was frozen on the spot, he didn't dare do as the older man asked knowing that it would get him in even more trouble._

_"I said... Empty. Your. Pockets."_

_The sound of flesh meeting flesh reverberated through the room and brown eyes went wide with tears and pain. Slowly as though moving through a thick soup the child emptied his pockets of his stash not daring to meet his elders eye but he could feel the anger in Howard building._

_"So not only do you break in here but you think you can steal from me as well?"_

_Tony winced and braced himself for another strike but it didn't come. Instead when he looked at the man he called father all he saw was a cruel, calculating look and for some reason it scared the child more than the thought of another slap did._

_Howard remained completely silent as he lifted the youngster from the bench and carried him across the room. Out of the corner of his eye Tony could see the piles of empty bomb casings just waiting to be filled with the complicated electronics his father specialized. Suddenly dread and realization dawned on the young Stark and he began to flail in the mans grip, frantically trying to escape. Howard however was having none of his wayward sons antics and slapped him again, this time hard enough to stun the youngster and the child went limp in his arms._

_When Tony regained his senses everything was dark and he could feel the coolness of metal digging into his sides. There was a thin strip of light spilling in giving him just enough to make out his surroundings. He had been squashed inside what appeared to be a small metal tube and Tony felt his breath catch as his heart began to beat double time in his chest. He shifted slightly to free his arm and started to bang on the metal paneling directly in front of him, his voice getting higher in pitch as he cried out for help._

* * *

"...He didn't let me out for four hours, he kept me trapped in that tiny place for _four hours_. When he finally let me out I was an absolute wreck and I couldn't stand being enclosed in anyway for months afterwards..."

Tony's voice was utterly broken and Bruce could see the muscles in his jaw working furiously as he tried to contain his emotions.

"...I mean what kind of person does that to their kid? Can you see why I say I shouldn't be conflicted? He was nothing but a fucking bully."

The physicist couldn't really give an answer to this but he knew that his friend wasn't really looking for one; Tony knew the kind of man Howard truly was and so did Bruce. The billionaire turned around his body stiff and his skin pasty the toll of this emotional show and tell clearly showing. Bruce let out a sigh and hesitantly placed a hand on Tony's shoulder deciding that distraction was the best course of action.

"So... What do we do now? Where do we go from here?"

The dulled eyes seemed to regain a glimmer of their previous luster as Tony's brain slipped into problem solving mode.

"As much as it pains me to say it, I think we need the teams help..." Tony grimaced "... I want to know _exactly_ who did this so I can make them regret ever messing with a Stark and while I could probably find out I'll more than likely draw attention; which is the last thing we need right now."

The physicist nodded in agreement; while he didn't doubt Tony's information gathering skills for a second he knew that the other man was right to involve the team. Natasha and Clint had a lifetime of espionage training the could utilize and with them in the picture it meant they were less likely to be noticed.

"Sounds like a plan Tony and I agree that we need to keep ourselves off the radar as long as possible, we don't know what we're heading into here." Bruce replied taking a step back to a comfortable distance.

The billionaire snorted softly "When do we ever big guy?"

"Touche."

Tony shook his head in exasperated amusement.

"Okay I hate to be the voice of reason here because quite frankly it's boring but I think we need some sleep because you quite frankly look as someone has punched you and I have no desire to deal with Captain Virginity, Legolas or La Femme Nikita without at least four hours sleep under my belt."

Bruce didn't deign to argue; Tony's logic was flawless as usual but he was hesitant to leave the other man. There was still an air of unbalance around him that the physicist didn't like, it reminded him far, far too much of himself but he knew that Tony wouldn't appreciate the smothering and so decided to drop it for the time being. At the end of the day the billionaire was a big boy; he could generally look after himself and well, he could always ask JARVIS to keep him updated on Tony's status if he was still worrying.

The two men entered the penthouse and bid each other goodnight before parting ways and happy that his friend would be okay for the time being Bruce set off toward his own room; intent on sleeping on something other than an uncomfortable cot. Once in the elevator he spoke to the AI.

"JARVIS can you inform me if Tony looks as if he's about to do anything stupid."

"Of course Doctor Banner." JARVIS replied instantaneously.

"Thank you JARVIS."

Feeling much more assured that Tony was in safe hands for the rest of the night he was more than happy to settle for the evening and as soon as his head hit the pillow of the expensive double bed Bruce was out like a light.

~End of Chapter 8~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My Tony muse is currently sulking because I keep picking on him XD. Comments make my days worth living (Yup still a comment whore *^_^*)


	9. Chapter Nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the team get together and discuss some _things_ , Fury makes an appearance and points them in the direction of the rabbit hole.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally got to watch Iron Man 3 and OMFG all my Tony feels came back like whoa! But URGH! This chapter has been an almighty pain to write... I'm soooo bad at writing the team T_T. I'm so very sorry for this sucky chapter but it needed to be done (God Damn! plot progression chapters).
> 
> Thank you to everyone for the kudos and comments *Glomps all ma peeps*

Daddy Dearest

Chapter Nine:

The next morning each of the Avengers present in the tower woke up in completely different way.

Steve had crashed on the camp bed in Bruce's lab, unwilling to leave Howard alone for any period of time. The older man had seemed distinctly out of sorts when the super soldier had explained that he had been frozen in a cryogenic sleep for the last twenty five years and he knew from experience that having someone to talk to helped immensely. So he had stayed until Howard fell back asleep; which was at some point during the wee hours of the morning. He woke up with a crick in his neck and the extreme belief that Bruce must be an utter sucker for punishment because that camp bed was _murder._

Bruce woke up feeling more refreshed than he had in days but passing out after working to the point of exhaustion tended to do that for you. He rolled over and groaned when he realized he'd fallen asleep with glasses on and had once again bent them out of shape. He extracted himself from the bed sheets and headed toward the bathroom, knowing that a hot shower would get him ready for the day.

A _perfect_ start to a _perfect_ day.

Yeah right... Bruce learned long ago that there was no such thing as a perfect day and if his gut instinct was anything to go by today wasn't going to be anything close.

Clint woke up instantly alert; years of ingrained training kicking into effect he scoped out his room to make sure that everything was as he had left it the night before. Satisfied that his sanctuary hadn't been breached he flopped back over and fell back asleep; happy to enjoy the down time while he had it.

Natasha merely snuck into her room and sat on the pristinely made bed after returning from wherever she had disappeared to the night before.

Thor was still on Asgard so you couldn't be sure of the time there.

And Tony, well Tony merely opened his eyes and sighed. He'd really tried to get some sleep, honestly; it was just the pesky bastard had eluded him at every turn; as soon as he'd sort of settled his mind there was a brief flash of memory, emotion and he was wide awake again.

It was getting really fucking frustrating.

"Sir, the time is exactly seven-thirty am and it approximately sixty-two degrees Fahrenheit. The weather is slightly overcast..."

The billionaire ignored JARVIS's ramblings and rolled out of bed once again missing the warm body that should be laying beside him. He knew that Pepper was busy and it really wasn't fair to involve her in all this shit but there was only so much comfort the rest of the Avengers could provide.

"JARVIS can you inform the Avenger that I want to see them in the communal area at oh nine hundred?" Tony half grumbled, making his way to the bathroom.

"Of course Sir, is there anything else you require?"

"No." The answer was short and sweet.

"Very good Sir."

The bathroom door swung shut behind him and Tony leaned against it heavily; he stared down at his hand inspecting where his knuckles had come into contact with Howard's jaw admiring the bruising. He hadn't realized at the time just how hard he'd hit the other man but if the swelling of his hand was anything to go by it had been pretty damn hard. It wasn't as if Howard hadn't deserved it but in retrospect it probably hadn't been the best opening gambit, as much as Tony loathed the idea they needed Howard to trust them.

Especially since things looked like they were about to get messy.

The billionaire made short work of the shower pointedly avoiding looking at his reflection in any of the reflective surfaces dotted around the room and walked back out into the bedroom; a towel draped around his waist. For the briefest of moments Tony considered his clothing before pulling on a clean pair of cargo pants and his favorite AC/DC t-shirt because it was the only comfort he was probably going to experience today.

* * *

Nine o'clock rolled around and as requested the team had congregated in the communal area; everyone that is except Tony. The billionaire sauntered in five minutes after everyone else, refusing to be anything except fashionably late and sat down on the couch; distictly aware of the wall of tension threatening to crush him from all sides. With a confidence that was more show than reality he stared down the team ready for the inevitable interrogation.

"So Stark, why don't you start from the top." Natasha asked, cocking an eyebrow.

Tony just managed to bite back the retort knowing that the Widow wouldn't be impressed with smart-assery in such a serious situation. Slowly and rather surprizingly he began to talk about the events that had lead to this point, with Bruce occasionally adding in the odd quiet comment. Finally he reached the crescendo of his story ignoring the stern set to Steve's jaw when he talked about his 'attack' on Howard and Bruce's findings in the elder Stark's DNA and bloodwork.

"So that pretty much brings us up to date..."

The billionaire's body language was casual but he knew that he wasn't really fooling any of the people who were sitting around him, they'd experienced far too much to not know each other traits and flaws. He also knew that he was taking a big risk personally by involving them in this. They would get to see all of his baggage, all the cracks, all the imperfections that made Tony who he was and he was going out on a limb, trusting that Barton hadn't been lying to him.

Unsurprizingly it was Steve that was causing Tony the most grief.

The other man just sat there a grim look on his face and an age old grief in those startling blue eyes. He hadn't said anything yet; had just listened with a somewhat morbid curiosity, just trying to absorb everything that was being said. The billionaire just stared long and hard at the blonde waiting for a reaction; a scathing retort, a righteous barb, anything at all to show that he'd acknowledged what had been said but Steve just sat there silently.

"So... What do we do now?" Clint asked, face serious and eyes hard.

Tony grimaced slightly and shifted on the couch clearly more than a little angry.

"I want to find the fucker's who did this and make it so they never see the light of another day, I'm an Avenger... May as well live up to the title."

The words were filled with venom and no one was really surprised at the show of animosity, if any of them had been in Tony's position they would have wanted the same thing; retribution: swift, violent retribution. Again the billionaire shifted on the spot but this time it was more from discomfort than anger.

"Which is why I'm asking for your help... I could probably do this alone but it would raise a ton of red flags and I'm not prepared to do that; not yet at least but I thought..."

He drifted off clearly uncomfortable at actually _asking_ for something instead of just throwing his charm or money at it and making the problem vanish. Around the room the others with exception of Bruce were staring at Tony, varying ranges of shock plastered across their faces as they tried to comprehend that Tony Stark had just _asked_ them for _help_.

"Sir, Director Fury is on the line shall I patch him through?"

JARVIS's mechanised voice broke the heavy tension that had settled over the team and Tony couldn't have been more grateful for the interuption. They looked at one another wondering just what Fury wanted from them this time.

"Yeah... Put him through Jay."

Fury's face appeared on the holographic screen in the centre of the room and he didn't look pleased, then again he never really looked pleased (especially if Tony was generally involved) so it was a pretty moot point. His fingers were steeped in front of him and there was a look in his eye that screamed that this was serious.

"Stark I thought you'd be alone, I was hoping for an update."

Tony merely shrugs in response, he doesn't think for a second that the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D isn't aware of how the current situation stands. Although Natasha has loyalty for the Avengers he also knows that she is also loyal to Fury and that she had been keeping him updated on all the goings on within the team.

He'd just never mentioned he'd known until now because there hadn't been a point.

"Everybody knows the sitch; as do you thanks to your little arachnid... With the exception of those assholes playing God with dear ole' dads DNA..."

The billionaire ignored the heated glare that Natasha pinned him with and instead focused on the man in front of him. As usual the man was giving away nothing with his body language but the lack of shock at Tony's comment made him think that Fury had already known about whatever had been done to Howard.

Or had at least found something out between finding out he was alive and now.

"So lets cut out all the BS and get straight to brass tax here... What the fuck do you want Fury?" His voice was smug accompanying the grin on his face.

The look on the Director's face could only be described as sour and his visible eye narrowed at Tony's crass way of approaching the subject.

"I don't _want_ anything Stark; in fact I'm here to give you something."

The smug grin slid from Tony's face and he sat forward elbows on his knees, face intense. Beside him he could see Bruce and Steve fidgeting, unsure whether or not to put in their own two cents into this conversation but apparently deciding against it for the time being.

"Okay I'll bite... What do you have for the man who has everything?"

Fury rolled his eyes in exasperation and pinched the bridge of his nose clearly fighting off a migraine. In frame he held up what appeared to be a portable flash drive for Tony's perusal.

"This."

The billionaire looked completely unimpressed.

"Uh... No offence but I think I literally own about a million of them, care to elaborate?" There was a biting edge to his voice and he was rapidly losing patience with this conversation.

Fury seemed to sense the irratability and quickly explained.

"After you brought this to my attention I had a few of my _unofficial_ agents do some research. There were only two things they could find; a project name: Ragnarok and a location: Woodlawn*..."

The Avengers listened in silence seemingly hanging on every word Fury spoke, not liking the ominous feeling that was starting to emerge.

"... This drive has all the information we've been able to obtain, which for the record is virtually nothing but I know you Stark, you'll work something out."

He plugged the drive into his computer and let JARVIS do the rest, he knew that Stark's AI still had access to the S.H.I.E.L.D servers so this was the easiest way to transfer the data as much as he resented that fact.

JARVIS minimized Fury's face and pulled up the data that had been sent, like the Director had said there wasn't much to go on. There were a few building schematics, infra-red readings, topography chats and a some medical journals but nothing really solid enough to get an accurate picture of what the facility was used for or the purpose of project Ragnarok.

"Well whatever it is they're using a lot of computers..." Natasha said, pointing to two large circles on the schematic "These look like they could be cooling towers."

Bruce stared closer at the blueprint and nodded in agreement.

"So maybe a server farm then? The electrical output is pretty high."

Tony looked thoughtful and poked further into the data. The guys Fury had used weren't amateurs much to his surprize, they were almost on par with him and they hadn't been able to make a dent in their cyber-defenses. They were going to need physical access to actually get anything from the damned place because it was a completely closed network. He was pretty sure that Fury already knew that and was manipulating them into getting the information he required but at the moment he didn't give two shits about S.H.I.E.L.D's ulterior motives. He had to figure out a way to get in there.

"This looks like an almighty pain in the fucking arse, if we want any answers then we're gonna have to get in there." Tony huffed in annoyance running a hand through his hair.

"Not something I say often but I agree with Stark." Natasha replied, eyes narrowed at the screen.

"It's not something anyone generally says Nat." Clint joked, joining in on the conversation.

The billionaire shot Hawkeye a sour look and flipped him an offensive hand gesture to which the archer just smiled in reply; sidling closer in to get a better look.

"So, do you think it's possible to get in there?" Bruce asked adjusting his glasses.

Natasha and Clint both shot him a look that clearly said _'Are you_ _ **kidding**_ _me? You_ _ **do**_ _know who you're dealing with here'_ and Tony bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from laughing at the slightly flustered look on the physicist's face.

"Yeah I'd say so, we'd need to actually go and see the place to get a better picture but I think it's doable."

The four Avengers turned to Steve clearly waiting for him to say something, after a moment the super-soldier sighed and joined his team-mates. He wasn't happy that once again Tony was dragging the team into something they really had no business being involved in but he'd promised himself that he would be more civil toward the billionaire. The fact that he really wanted to know for himself just what had been done to his friend had done absolutely nothing to push him into helping even though he thought it was a stupid and possibly suicidal idea.

"We're going to need a plan." He said simply.

Tony shot him a small grateful smile and Steve couldn't help but send one back, he had to admit it was nice not to be clashing with the other man for a change.

"Okay lets go team!" Clint crowed far too enthusiastically for so early in the morning.

The rest of the team just rolled their eyes and Natasha gave him a quick cuff around the head. The billionaire headed to the coffee machine and poured enough cups for everyone, after all you couldn't come up with a good plan without a healthy dose of caffeine in your system.

~End Chapter Four~

*Yes this is a reference to Die Hard 4.0 because that film is the freaking shizzle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> URGHHHHHHHH! Chapter. Giving. Migraine... Anywho, it's finally written and now I can get on to the good stuff XD. The team are united in finding out about 'Project Ragnarok' but are they going to like how deep the rabbit hole goes? (And that was totally not at all mysterious) Comments as always are loved like life itself.


	10. Chapter Ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Bruce and Howard _talk_ , Steve wonders about Tony's sanity and the Hulk makes a not so little appearance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woot! Quick update for all you lovely people... Hope this chapter doesn't disappoint!

Daddy Dearest

Chapter Ten.

The tentative truce between Steve and Tony managed to last the entirety of the planning session; much to the rest of the team's surprise and after they had a basic plan in place the two men parted fairly amicably. Bruce couldn't help but feel relieved that some of the tension had been alleviated, it would have made life in the tower almost unbearable and the way things were going they needed to stand united. After Tony left the room the physicist approached Steve somewhat nervously, giving a small cough to garner the man attention.

"I wanted to say thank you."

The Captain looked up, confusion evident in the blue eyes.

"What for?"

Bruce tried not to fidget under Steve's earnest stare, even though they had resolved quite a few of their differences the previous day he still felt a little wary talking to the younger man.

"For talking to Howard... And not just dismissing Tony."

The blonde shrugged nonchalantly but refused to meet his eye, clearly uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was taking. Bruce rolled his eyes in slight exasperation; honestly for all their differences Steve and Tony shared some startling similarities but it was only when they were tested did they show.

"Nothing to thank me for Doctor, I think you put it quite aptly yesterday, the important thing is not our differences but finding out what has been done to Howard and why. This truce between me and Tony is a means to an end for both of us as much as I wish it were the contrary."

There was genuine sadness in the super-soldier's voice and a lost look in his eyes that worried Bruce. He had never really considered Steve's stand-point; a gross oversight now that he really thought about it and just the thought of what the young and yet far older man had experienced made the physicist want to shudder.

Was it any wonder they always argued when they hadn't taken the time to really get to know one another? Bruce felt the shame scalding his insides.

"Steve I don't believe for a second that Tony is just using you to get what he wants. As much as he pretends that it doesn't your onion does matter to him, it matters to all of us and we're here to listen to what you have to say, _whatever it may be_."

He offered a small smile as he emphasized the last few words and Steve's lips twitched in response.

"If you're offering to be my therapist you're a bit late I've already got one; S.H.I.E.L.D mandated and everything."

The physicist couldn't quite suppress the small chuckle at Steve's comment.

"Me a therapist? Have you _met_ me? No, I was thinking something more along the lines of a friend."

The blonde's eyes widened slightly; while it was true they all worked together and lived together there were still rifts between them, even if they were unintentional. Steve respected Bruce greatly; his mind was often as confusing as Tony's but his reserved nature often meant he faded into the background. The fact that he was extending the olive branch so to speak really meant a lot to him and he felt a small smile creep across his face.

"That sounds pretty swell Doc." He replied.

"Well... Good." There was an edge to the older man's voice as though he hadn't expected the blonde to accept his offer.

An uneasy silence passed over them; soon Bruce's skittishness was back in full force and Steve couldn't help but marvel at the quick changes in demeanor. The physicist noticed the stares and stuck his hands in his pockets, twisting them in the fabric as his discomfort overcame him and within minutes Bruce had excused himself practically running to the lab. Not before grabbing a few breakfast items presumably for their guest.

Steve merely shook his head in exasperated amusement; as much as the world around him was changing there were some things that always stayed the same.

In the lab Bruce had to re-center himself; he honestly hadn't known what he'd been doing when he been talking to Steve, the words had just projectile vomited themselves from his mouth. But he had meant everything he'd said even if he'd been somewhat reluctant to say it.

Absent-mindedly he checked through the security footage from the night noting nothing of any real significance the physicist grabbed the luke-warm croissants and orange juice he'd brought with him and walked into the medical room.

Howard was already awake and his eyes narrowed into a sullen glare as he spotted Bruce.

"Oh, it's _you_."

Bruce brushed of the disdain with ease he'd been subjected to far worse that what this man could throw at him. Affixing a rigid smile to his face he approached the elder Stark brandishing the simple breakfast in an almost teasing manner.

"Yes it's _me._ I take it from your tone that you're not hungry." Bruce retorted, turning to leave his patience stretching thin.

Howard's glare intensified and he mumbled a few choice curse words under his breath, stubbornly holding out his hand to accept the tray. The physicist handed it to him without a fuss and watched as he devoured the pastries like a ravenous beast and Bruce couldn't blame him.

The other man finished his breakfast before once again pinning the physicist with that unfathomable glare.

"Didn't your parents ever tell you it was rude to stare?"

The anger at the comment caught Bruce off guard and it took all of his control to force the Hulk back.

"My parents have nothing to do with this; this is all about you Mr. Stark." He replied voice and body language as neutral as he could get it.

Howard's expression changed and a slightly maniacal smile crossed his lips as he moved to exploit the chink in Bruce's armor. Like father like son, Howard knew weakness when he saw it but unlike Tony Howard wasn't above taking advantage of it to obtain his goals (at least most of the time).

"Ah... So you're one of _those_?"

"One of what?" The physicist snapped back before forcefully putting a lid on his irritation.

Stark merely continued to smile that cruel smile, this was something he could do; manipulation and intimidation were the fundamentals of the business world and Howard Stark had been well schooled in both.

"An abandoned one, whore of a mother couldn't cope so they threw you out in the cold; unloved."

Who was this man with the audacity to insult his mother?

Bruce took a deep steadying breath; he could feel the green starting to tint his iris and knew that he had to clamp down on the pure rage that was seething to the forefront. Howard was pushing his buttons on purpose; lashing out to defend himself Bruce _knew_ that. It didn't make the words any easier to hear though or mean that they cut any less deeply.

"My mother was not a whore."

He hadn't meant to reply, the words had just slipped out but the elder Stark had latched on and was going in for the kill.

"Maybe your daddy was just too soft then, needed to _reprimand_ you more? Then again there isn't much to be done with a problem child they should be thrown in a lake in my opinion, know I would have done so been given the chance but you do the best you can."

Anger and numb horror at the man's words circled in Bruce's stomach and he found his last shred of control slipping away, the stress and lack of real sleep finally taking its toll. Hulk was roaring in protest at the slight to Bruce; at the horrifying slight to his friend and at the callous, evil words the man had spoken. Howard had chosen his weapons carefully but had missed out on a few vital points that would have altered his game plan and now he was going to see the error of his oversight.

Eyes burning that luminous, poisonous green the physicist shot forward and grabbed the elder Stark by the front of his shirt, lifting the man from the bed with ease. His limbs were trembling as he fought off the impending transformation, there was no stopping it now both Bruce and Hulk were pissed. It also wasn't often they agreed on something so when Bruce spoke he spoke for both of them, his voice low and rough as gravel.

"Listen to me Stark. You are a pathetic excuse for a father and how Tony became half the man he is today I'll never know and if hear you talking about 'disposing' of him again I may just take after _my_ father and _dispose of you_."

Howard dangled limply in Bruce's grasp a look of pure fear on his face as he stared into the glowing green eyes. Normally the physicist would have recoiled at such a look but he wanted this man to be afraid; he'd tempted fate and asked for his wrath and Bruce was more than happy to bestow it. He let the man drop to the bed with a bounce and then turned and practically ran from the room.

He only just made it to the Green Room in time.

* * *

 

"Sir, Doctor Banner has entered the Green Room."

Tony looked up from the schematic he was working on, a worried look on his face. It had been months since Bruce had had an 'unsanctioned' incident (which had admittedly been _totally_ his fault) and the fact he was having one now didn't bode well.

"Has Jolly Green made an appearance yet?"

"Yes Sir..." JARVIS replied "Mr. Hulk 'made an appearance' as soon as Doctor Banner entered the room."

_Well shit; that wasn't a good sign._

Tony closed the documents and raced from the shop; on his way down to Green Room he was met by Steve who looked just as concerned as him.

"JARVIS can you tell us what set Banner off?"

If it had been anyone else asking it would have sounded like a condemnation but the worry in the billionaire's voice was far too genuine to be anything but real and Steve felt a twinge of guilt.

"It appeared that Doctor Banner had an altercation with Mr. Stark senior. Sir."

_Fuck, with a shit scoop on top._

The super soldier tried and failed to hide his look of alarm while Tony merely grimaced at JARVIS's revelation and the billionaire sprung into action.

"Pull up the footage and send it to my phone, I want to know what the old goat said."

The AI quickly complied and soon the two men were watching the confrontation that occurred in the medical lab. Tony's grimace turned into a tight-lipped snarl and the blonde's face went drained of all its color. He honestly couldn't believe what he had just witnessed; the words that had come out of Howard's mouth. Steve had known that the man had a wicked tongue it was a trait his son had inherited and embraced wholeheartedly but to hear him callously taunt his teammate and then casually comment that he wished he'd drowned his son was something he couldn't quite reconcile. He knew that many years had passed between them and Howard had changed during that time but what had happened to make the man so bitter and twisted as to lash out at someone only trying to help?

It made Steve feel sick to the stomach but there had to be a reason.

"Just don't Steve."

"Don't what?" Steve's eyes narrowed in confusion.

"Defend him… "

"I wasn't goi…"

Tony sighed and cut across him.

"I can see the look on your face, you're trying to rationalize what he said, find the reasons behind it but I can tell you now there are none. He's just a fucking vile bastard who likes to cause pain and suffering, no logic, no reason, just pain."

Steve couldn't believe that, _refused_ to believe that. The elder Stark had once been a good man and an even better friend; he was sure that the Howard he had grown so fond of was still in there somewhere beneath the vitriol. Beside him he could sense Tony seething with anger and struggling to keep it under wraps.

"So what do we do now?" The blonde asked.

The billionaire's jaw clenched as though the choice between what he needed to do and what he actually wanted to do was causing him physical pain. He tucked the phone back into his pocket trying to banish the things he'd just witnessed from his mind.

"Well first things first we go and make sure Bruce is ok, he's not going to be feeling to proud of himself after that little outburst..." Here Tony gave a feral grin "... And then I'm going to have a little chat with my daddy dearest."

The sarcastic, vicious tone of the billionaire's voice made Steve shudder and he was suddenly very concerned for his friends safety. He'd heard about Tony's earlier outburst from Clint and he had to admit he wasn't exactly keen to see it repeated. Maybe he could ask for Bruce's help to keep the other genius in line but somehow he doubted the physicist would feel up to helping.

The door to the Green Room was _imposing,_ there just wasn't any other way to describe it. Steve hadn't visited this particular room before and he could honestly say he was glad for it.

"JARVIS has Bruce come back yet?" Tony asked.

Although they couldn't hear anything through the immense amount of soundproofing the walls shook from the forces inside.

"Forget that question; I'm going to take the answer as a resounding no."

The billionaire started punching in a long and complicated number sequence into the electronic panel while Steve watched on with fascination and a small amount of carefully concealed fear. Finally the panel beeped loudly 'access granted' flashing on the display and Tony smiled that unnerving smile again making Steve feel nervous that he was about to do something stupid.

"So Capsicle you coming in?" He asked casually leaning against the wall.

Yup, definitely something stupid. The soldiers eyes almost bugged out of his head at the thought of going in there without any kind of protection available.

"Are you _crazy_ Tony? The way Hulk is right now he'll rip you limb from limb."

The billionaire shrugged off his comment effortlessly and stood up straight, staring deep into Steve's eyes with an earnestness that made the blonde's heart hurt.

"Trust me, Bruce, Hulk and I have been working on this. You're perfectly safe."

There was such conviction and blind, loyal faith in Tony's voice that he just couldn't help but give in. He wanted to see that the other man was right, to see that Hulk could be trusted even in his worst state but he still had his doubts.

"Okay."

The billionaire smiled as he hit the button and the door slid open.

The room was more like a cavern than a room with metal plates drilled into bedrock to reinforce the structure. Strewn across the floor there were various clusters of junk metal, plastic and wood; some of which had already taken a beating and was that a waterfall pool? Steve couldn't hold back the small gasp of laughter and shot an amused look at Tony, who just grinned in response.

The smiles didn't last long as a roar pierced the air reminding both men of why they were there.

The Hulk waa on the far side of the room making short work of a bunch of scaffolding his huge fists swinging wildly and a constant low growl erputing from his chest. Moving more boldly than he felt the billionaire walked forward and cupped his hands around his mouth.

"Hey! Big Guy!" He bellowed.

Hulk stopped and turned, the green eyes narrowed in distrust.

"Away Tony, Away!" He ground out.

"Sorry Big Guy, not going to happen. Now why don't you tell me what's going on in that big green head of yours."

The giant stopped his destruction and sat down heavily.

"Pain. Past. Old man hurt Banner."

Tony could sympathize with that and he sat down next to Hulk, leaning against the giant green leg.

"Yeah, he's good at that... But you're safe now, I won't let him hurt you or Bruce anymore."

The Hulk grunted softly fists clenched tightly in his lap and Steve watched with fascination as the two interacted with one another. He could see the agitation still evident in the Hulk but he was controlling it amazingly well, far better than he had ever imagined.

"Hulk, smash old man."

"I know buddy, but you can't smash everything all the time as much as I'd agree this time."

This time the giant gave a snort that sounded suspciously like laughter.

"Tony want smash too?"

Tony nodded.

"I do but this time I can't." He replied somewhat forelornly.

"Understand. But no like. Banner back now."

The Hulk went completely still as the transformation reverted and within a few minutes an exhausted looking Bruce was spread-eagled on the floor. Tony stood and headed over to an alcove in the wall pulling out a spare set of clothing and the heading back out the physicist. With a cheeky grin on his face the billionaire prodded Bruce with his foot, eliciting a groan from the other man.

"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty."

Bruce swatted at the foot poking his side mumbling incoherently into the floor. Taking that as a reason to continue the billionaire dropped the clothes on the prone man's head causing him to sqwark in surprize and bolt upright.

"You're an ass Stark." He muttered, brown eyes narrowed in contempt.

Tony laughed the insult off and walked back over to Steve, who looked as if he was struggling to wrap his head around what had just happened. Bruce sighed and dressed himself quickly before heading over to his team-mates a shameful look on his face but before he even had the chance apologize Tony held up his hand to stop him talking.

"Don't want to hear it Brucey." There was a finality to his tone.

Bruce ignored it.

"I threatened him Tony and then _Hulked_ - _out_..." There was a distateful edge to his voice as he used that phrase "...How can you be okay with that?"

The billionaire shrugged and leaned on the other man's shoulder, ignoring the way he flinched at the contact.

"Because he deserved it; JARVIS showed us what he said... And well your coping mechanism was far better than mine."

The physicist pulled away looking thoroughly scandalized at what Tony was implying.

"I turned into the Hulk! How is _that_ better?"

" _You_ didn't actually hurt anyone, if you remember rightly _I_ punched the bastard in the face."

Bruce looked completely aghast at the billionaire's logic and shook his head in exasperation; unable or unwilling to come up with an argument at that point in time.

"And speaking of that bastard I think it's time I paid him a little visit. He needs to learn that there are some house rules he has to follow unless he wants to go back to being a human popsicle."

Bruce and Steve shared a look knowing that there was no use trying to dissuade Tony, he had made his mind up and that was that. All they could do now was manage damage control and pray that everyone made it through unscathed.

~End Chapter Ten~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again to everyone for all the support! You're all the freaking shizzle.


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tony and Howard 'talk', the start of the Stark's relationship breakdown is revealed and people start to pick sides.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANK YOU GUYS!! Glad everyone is still enjoying this random story my brain decided to vomit.
> 
> *Hugs everyone soooooooo tight*
> 
> Uh so yeah there are some warnings for this chapter:
> 
> There are scenes of a SEXUAL NATURE in this chapter, some mentions of physical violence toward a child and a fair amount of foul language. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.
> 
> Right now the obligatory stuff is out the way enjoy!

Chapter Eleven:

Tony strode through the corridor with a poised and purposeful air around him while Steve and Bruce followed behind him at their own pace. He hadn't thought it possible for him to hate Howard any more than he already did but he'd just managed to graduate himself to the top of the billionaire's 'total fucking scumbags' list.

To say he was livid with the older man was an understatement; he was _fucking furious_ and Howard was about to learn _exactly_ what that entailed. In the past being Howard Stark may have meant something but right here and now it stood for diddly squat; literally nothing.

The billionaire had pulled away from the others by the time he reached his destination; the laboratory door slid open as he approached and he was unsurprised to find it completely immaculate inside. Bruce had always been a stickler for cleanliness; 'a clutter free work-space equals a clutter free mind' although Tony guessed the physicist meant that as an ironic joke more than anything else. The door to the medical bay loomed before him as much a mental barrier as a physical one and he had to take a steadying breath before giving the order to open.

Before entering Tony spoke to his AI.

"JARVIS this door is not to open for any reason once I'm inside unless I say so; understand?"

"Of course Sir." The stiff British voice replied.

Knowing that he no longer had any excuse or reason not to the billionaire stepped forward into the medical bay.

The room was quiet as he entered, Howard was lying on his side facing the wall and if he noticed Tony entering he didn't announce the fact that he had.

Well that wouldn't do _at all_.

Picking up the metal breakfast tray perched on a nearby cabinet Tony slammed it to the floor using most of his strength; causing a sizeable clatter and making the older man dart up from his prone position in shock.

"I'm _sorry_ , did I _disturb_ you?" Tony asked cheekily, a look of mock innocence on his face.

Howard remained stony faced and didn't reply, his eyes narrowed in distaste.

"Actually fuck that..." The billionaire amended suddenly turning into the ruthless business man he was known to be "... I really don't care if I disturbed you or not because you and me need to have a little talk about some house rules."

The elder Stark looked as if he was about to say something but Tony held up his hand to stem the flow of words. At this point in time he honestly had no interest in what the other man had to say.

"Nope, not interested in you flapping your gums. For once you are going to sit there and listen to what I have to say."

Howard frowned clearly not happy with being told what to do and he couldn't resist the urge to speak his mind, despite what the younger man had said.

"I see you're still the self-absorbed, arrogant little upstart you always were." Howard retorted.

Tony rolled his eyes and sat himself in one of the chairs at the end of the bed, staring down his father with an unfathomable look on his face.

"This is me honestly not giving a fuck what you think Howard, now shut up like a good boy and listen to the big boy in the room..."

The billionaire stretched out his legs like a cat, not breaking eye contact.

"... So house rules, unless you want to go back in the freezer. Rule one: No making Bruce angry, you really wouldn't like him when he's angry."

Howard gave an indignant snort of laughter clearly not believing Tony's warning but he didn't let his tongue run away this time.

"Rule two: You are to show respect to every member of this household, not just Capsicle."

Again this 'rule' was met with a look of exasperation which the billionaire expertly ignored.

"And... Rule three: You are not allowed to touch, look or even breathe on my stuff or leave this room unescorted, if at all."

There was a quiet finality in Tony's voice that more than one business associate had learned to fear, Howard however was completely unfazed and looked more insulted than anything else.

"Do you honestly expect me to comply with any of those rules?" The elder asked a fierce look on his face.

The billionaire just about resisted the urge to roll his eyes and tried to not to let the man's abrasive nature rub him the wrong way. It wouldn't do for him to lose his cool now; he had to prove that he was the bigger man here as much as he wanted to do otherwise.

"I'm not asking, I'm _telling_ you you'll comply."

"You always were such a brat..." Howard retorted "... Throwing a tantrum if you couldn't get your own way. I'm not surprised to see you haven't changed one bit."

Tony bit the inside of his cheek hard enough to draw blood in order to stop the scathing comment on the tip of his tongue from escaping. He'd said he would be the bigger man and _god fucking damn_ it he was going to be.

"I'm a lot different than you remember." He answered stiffly.

The older man shot him a disbelieving look and folded his arms across the chest, his whole posture screaming 'disapproval' and the small child trapped inside Tony's mind flinched involuntarily. There were just some things that could never be unlearned once they had been beaten into you enough.

"No, you're not. You're still that pathetic disappointment always running to mommy but in the end she saw it too, didn't she?"

The comment was like a whip lashing across his heart and the billionaire's jaw tensed. He had known this would be difficult the man sat before him knew all of his insecurities. Hell Howard was the _cause_ of most of them and he had no qualms about ruthlessly exploiting them, whether it be for his own gain or sick amusement. But Tony thought he'd had this under control; apparently he was wrong and he knew he'd soon start to lose this battle of wills if he didn't pick his game up.

"At least I didn't make her miserable."

A sick, cocky smile slid across Howard's face and he let a hollow laugh escape his lips; the sound grating like nails down a blackboard. Tony realized his mis-step almost instantly but by then it was already too late.

" _I_ made her miserable? If Maria hadn't fallen pregnant with _you_ she could have moved on with her life; done whatever she wanted. It was _you_ who kept her trapped in that life not me... It was _you_ who was the source of her misery. The same way you make everyone around you miserable."

The words burned; the younger man felt them brand themselves under his skin. He'd known he'd been the reason his mother had stayed for so long until she'd gotten so used to the life she couldn't break free. But he'd never thought he'd been the one to cause her suffering, Tony had always tried to protect her and make her happy.

Had he been doing harm than good?

No. He wouldn't believe that; _couldn't_ believe that, Howard had always been the one breaking things and hurting people.

But the billionaire could feel his conviction wavering and he needed to remind himself of the depths this man had sunk to.

_~Flashback~_

_Tony had always been curious when his father had brought 'guests' home, his childish curiosity almost overwhelming but survival instinct always kicked in at the last minute. He knew his father would be_ _**displeased** _ _with him if he caught him snooping around and that fear often stopped his more reckless actions._

_Not tonight though._

_Tonight he was going to find out what happened behind those closed doors._

_The six year old snuck along the corridor having already evaded Jarvis in the maze of bedrooms and now the only thing standing between his curiosity and an answer were the large doors leading to the reception room. Feeling as though his victory was assured the youngster lent his head against the door trying to catch a snippet of what was being said inside._

_All he could hear through the wood was a series of inarticulate groans and a sound that sounded suspiciously like someone was being slapped. A sound he unfortunately had some experience with and he felt the phantom linger of past pain wash over him. Was someone being hurt inside the room? Was his father being hurt in there? He knew that he could possibly get into big trouble for this but that was not going to deter Tony; it sounded like someone was hurt and he was going to do the right thing._

_He creaked the old door open; slowly to ensure that it didn't make a sound and popped his head into the opening._

_The room was dimly lit and now that the door was open he could make out the noises better. There were definitely two distinct sets of moans; did that mean there were two people who were hurt? Concern overwhelming his flight reflex the youngster ventured into the room, his dark eyes scanning the room for the source of the noises._

_In the corner of the room he could see the familiar and imposing figure of his father. He was braced across one of the large lounge couches that adorned the room and underneath him was a woman that was most certainly_ _**not** _ _his mother._

_Tony felt the bottom of his stomach drop out as the realization of_ what _was happening dawned on the youngster. He wasn't an idiot he knew that adults had sex but he'd been under the impression that this was something that only people who loved one another did._

_**'An expression of love.'** _

_That was how his mother had described it to him, with that small sad smile on her face when he'd asked her about it._

_He'd never seen that woman before and it certainly wasn't the same one that his father had brought last week, so how could his father love this woman?_

_The answer to the question was simple._

_He didn't._

_The answer made Tony feel as though he was going to throw-up but he just couldn't stop himself from watching as the bodies of his father and the mystery woman undulate against one another. He watched wide-eyed and slack-jawed as they reached the climax of their activities; the shock rendering him completely immobile as hurt and betrayal raged through him._

_How dare he._

_How_ _**dare** _ _he._

_His father was married to his mother, which meant he was_ _**supposed** _ _to love her; he was_ _**supposed** _ _to cherish her. He was not meant to be messing around with some random woman!_

_Raw anger replaced the numb shock and combined with the hurt and betrayal it was a potent, explosive force._

_"BASTARD!"_

_The youngster dashed forward filled with righteous fury and tackled Howard aiming for the knees like he'd been shown. The man; caught by surprise buckled to the ground and quickly found himself set upon by a furious Tony. He reigned down punches on his father like a whirlwind screaming all the obscenities he knew at the older man. Howard however recovered quickly and kicked the young child off of him, eyes wild and face flushed._

_Behind them the woman watched on in horror, her eyes bugging out of her head and clothes akimbo. Tony spat at her with pure venom and then rounded on his father._

_"You_ _**bastard** _ _how could you do this to mom! You're meant to love one another! You scumbag."_

_Howard turned to the woman and uttered a firm 'get out.' The woman needed no other prompting and quickly fled from the room leaving the two Stark's alone. The older man stalked forward a look of the purest anger on his face and grabbed hold of the small child by the throat and violently slamming him against the nearest wall. Tony's head bounced off the wall with a sickening thud._

_"What the fuck did you think you were doing? I've told you a thousand times not to come in here you little shit!"_

_The stench of alcohol on his father's breath made Tony want to gag; not a particularly great situation to be in when there was a hand clamped around your throat. He flailed wildly; his short limbs attempting to hurt Howard by any means but attempts were ultimately futile._

_"Fuck'n... Che't'n... 'umbag." Tony gasped out._

_The hand around the young boy's neck tightened and the youngster instantly stopped squirming; the pain and lack of oxygen causing to see spots before his eyes._

_"Now you listen and listen well you little fuck, the only reason you're even here is because of a_ _**mistake** _ _. The only reason I married your mother was because of a_ _**mistake** _ _._ _**You** _ _don't have the right to lecture me about love and family when you_ _**weren't wanted** _ _and are the by-product of_ _**mistakes** _ _. You_ _**ruined** _ _both of our lives!"_

_Tony could feel tears prick at his eyes as pain lanced right through his heart. Even though he knew that his father was more than a little inebriated he could sense no deceit in Howard's words, something he'd long ago learned to pick up on. He half choked a sob and went limp; any fight left in him extinguished by the sudden epiphany he'd be shown._

_He'd ruined his parents lives, what kind of monster was he?_

_It was here Howard let the child drop to the floor with a thump and after adjusting his clothing simply left the room; leaving a traumatized Tony shaking on the floor._

_It was several hours before anyone found the youngster and Jarvis pitched an absolute fit when he saw state his young master was in. He scooped up the still catatonic child into his arms and quickly rushed to Maria's bedroom._

_Tony's mother let out a gasp when she saw them and instantly pulled the child into bed with her; whispering comforting words into his ear and stroking long, nimble fingers through the soft hair. After a short while the youngster came back to his senses, whimpering softly and burying his head in his mother's soft nightdress,_

_They sat in silence for a moment and then Tony tentatively asked._

_"Mom, am I a mistake?"_

_Maria's eyes went wide and she wrapped her arms around her son._

_"Why do you think that?" Her voice was soft yet sorrowful._

_The young boy could bear to bring himself to tell her what Howard had said, the very thought of it sickening him to the core._

" _Just because…" He replied dropping his gaze to the floral quilt pooled around his body._

" _Baby, you are not a mistake. You may not have been expected but you were never a mistake. Now get these silly notions out of your head."_

_Tony snuggled close to his mother, the smell of jasmine washing over him and calming him to the point where he was on the verge of falling asleep in the crook of his mothers arm but before he succumbed he had one last question._

" _Mom do you love dad?"_

_The woman sighed softly her hand still carding through her son's hair and when she answered it was in the same soft sorrowful tone._

" _Yes, I do. Even if sometimes it's difficult."_

_The youngster lifted his head to meet his mother's gaze and he could see the pained, shadowed look on her face. It was at that moment Tony realized two things, one: His mother knew about his father's; no not father anymore, Howard's illicit activities and two: it hurt her more than she would ever let on. Howard's words came crashing back into his mind and he had to wonder if there was any truth to the face that he was the only reason his mother was here. In that moment the child made a vow to himself, he would protect his mother and do everything he could to make her happy because if it wasn't for him she would already be so._

_~End Flashback~_

Back in the here and now Tony could feel his head and his heart ache from reliving the memories of days gone by, in front of him was the man who had caused so many problems and yet still he couldn't find it in him to abandon the man. Howard however had no such qualms and was happy to tear down the man sat in front of him.

"Still got nothing to say?"

The billionaire felt his mind freeze and he grappled with the mental block.

"Howard that's enough."

Both men jumped at the new voice in the conversation and turned to the doorway to see Steve standing there a look of horror on his face, tucked in behind him was Bruce face carefully neutral. The soldier strode into the room and stared down at the elder Stark his mouth drawn into a thin line.

"That's enough, I can't listen to you tear Tony down anymore and not say anything. You may have issue with him but he is my friend and has proved himself more times than I care to count, has saved my life more times than I care to count and if that isn't deserving of your trust or respect then I don't know what is. I don't know what happened to you to turn you into this bitter man sat in front of me but you are not the Howard Stark I once knew."

With that Steve grabbed hold of Tony's forearm and pulled him upwards. Too shocked and numb to do anything other than comply Tony let the blonde drag him from the room gaping at the man.

"You… You stood up for me…"

The soldier gave a soft smile.

"Yeah I did."

"Why?" The billionaire asked genuinely confused.

Steve shrugged "I heard what he said to you, Bruce pulled up the camera feed and well… What he said wasn't fair and I'm pretty sure that all of it wasn't true. You may be a prick Tony but you're not pathetic and you don't make everyone around you miserable."

"Seconded by the way." Bruce interjected, shooting a tired smile Tony's way.

For a few moments the billionaire just stood there looking confused as he processed the information and then a small grateful smile spread across his face before turning into a devious smirk.

"You called me your friend."

There was a cheeky lilt to Tony's voice and Steve couldn't help but raise an amused eyebrow in response.

"Bruce! Steve called me his friend that means I get to torment him now!"

The physicist coughed into his sleeve to hide the laugh that was dying to erupt from his throat as Tony threw his arm around the soldier's shoulders as Steve blushed slightly.

"Don't push your luck Stark" Steve answered tartly.

Tony didn't reply but just grinned wider.

~End Chapter 11~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew that was a bit of an effort! But WOO everyone's sort of on the same page about Howard! Maybe now he'll start realizing what a dick he's been and amend it. Next chapter we'll be moving the plot along a bit XD.
> 
> Comments make me a happy lady!


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Clint and Natasha get some work done and a disturbing discovery is made.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so, so sorry!! Updates are good though... right? Thanks to everyone for the comments and Kudos. They really make my day!

Daddy Dearest

Chapter Twelve.

Clint leaned back in the driver's seat one hand resting on the steering wheel the other fidgeting with the expensive military dress shirt that was just a tad too tight around the collar. Beside him Natasha sat in her Widow gear and sighed pulling on his hand to stop the anxious tugging.

"Stark will kill you if you ruin this shirt." She said firmly but there was a teasing edge to her voice.

"Whatever..." Clint sulked "When we made this plan I thought you would've been the decoy, I'm useless at this stuff."

The Widow couldn't quite hide the smile at Hawkeye's complaints but she did understand his concern. Normally he would be the one doing the infiltration with her flirting and acting her way around anyone she came into contact with. This time was different though; the people here were trained against manipulation so her techniques would be next to useless. Also as chauvinistic as it sounded they would not believe that a woman had earned such a high rank and while the archer wasn't as _subtle_ as she was, he could play the 'authoritive asshole' role exceptionally well.

"Have some faith in your abilities Clint, I know I do."

Hawkeye couldn't quite bring himself to argue with Nat's words and just slumped slightly in the seat, visibly uncomfortable with the whole situation. Moments later there was a tapping on the driver's side window and Clint rolled down the tinted glass to reveal an anxious but excited looking Tony.

"Hope I wasn't interrupting anything kiddies?"

Both Hawkeye and Widow shot him their most unimpressed looks and under the dual stares Tony quickly backed off. He handed a case through the open window, a look of utmost professionalism on his face.

"Everything you need is in there; Com's units, fake ID's and the means to get into the main server room undetected."

There was definitely a smug undertone to his voice and it reassured the two S.H.I.E.L.D agents for some unfathomable reason. Natasha opened the case and pulled out the two earpieces handing one to Clint and then fixed her own into place.

"Thanks Stark, we'll be in touch..." She nodded toward her partner "Let's head out Clint."

Barton didn't argue and shifted the car into gear, revving the engine before pulling away with a squeal of tire spin, leaving a cursing Tony behind as he jumped backwards out of the way. In the car the woman rolled her eyes and raised an eyebrow at the archer.

"Was that really necessary?"

Clint shrugged "Not really but you have to admit it was funny."

Natasha just shook her head and decided not to question it any further, Clint's playful nature was a constant source of exasperation for her but it meant that he was taking this seriously enough to warrant him joking (admittedly a strange conclusion but true nonetheless) was reassuring.

The drive was quiet and uneventful; both of the S.H.I.E.L.D agents mentally preparing themselves for the task at hand. The server farm's location had been tracked down to an area in Ocean County, New Jersey in a quardened off area of cliff-land. This meant that not only was Woodlawn ridiculously fortified it was also nearly inaccessible except for the direct route.

Nearly being the operative word there.

It was nigh on impossible for even an above average person to infiltrate but Natasha Romanoff was not an above average person; she was exceptional and that was the reason she would be able to pull this off.

About half a mile from their destination Clint's pulled over into a cliff side lay-by and gave Natasha a serious look.

"You sure you're ready for this? It's a hell of a climb." He asked with genuine concern.

The red-head nodded her face unreadable; completely immersed in her 'Widow' persona. She systematically checked all of her equipment and once she was happy she propped open the car door. The wind whipped through her hair as she slid out of the car and Hawkeye felt his stomach flip nervously. He was well aware that his partner could handle this; that however didn't mean he had to feel comfortable or happy with it. He reached out gently touched her arm and she turned to face him.

"Be safe _rubin_."

There was the briefest flicker of a smile on Natasha's face and she laid her hand across Clint's.

"You too _shakhter_." She replied softly before pulling away and shutting the car door behind her.

The archer sighed as he watched her walk off and disappear between the craggy rocks taking a moment to compose himself. These kinds of partings were never made any easier not despite the large number they'd had over time. Finally feeling ready to continue he pulled away from the lay-by and continued down the road toward his target.

The drive from Natasha's drop off to Woodlawn was thankfully short therefore not allowing Clint the opportunity to brood. He pulled up to the main gate with his fake ID displayed proudly on his chest along with the various adornments and regalia that signaled a high ranking officer of the US armed forces. The guard on patrol upon seeing all of his military bling was understandably nervous.

"Authorized... Um personnel only Sir..."

Clint raised an eyebrow and put on his best 'The-only reason-I'm-not-firing-or demoting-you-is-because-I'm-being-ordered-not-to-a nd-not-because-I'm-really-a-nice-guy.' face. It was one he'd seen Tony use many times when dealing, well, with people in general (usually with Pepper hovering over his shoulder) and could be _damned_ intimidating to the uninitiated, not that he would _ever_ admit that to Stark.

"Son, do you honestly think I would drive all this way if I didn't _have_ authorization? Let alone _know_ where this place is in the first place?" His voice was flinty and Hawkeye was pleased to see the young man flinch.

"Well son...?"

The guard blanched slightly but didn't back down right away but after a few more moments turned and headed into the booth and opened the gate. Clint tried to not feel smug as he drove past the guard, knowing that this was only the beginning and there was still a lot of things that could go wrong.

He parked up inside the compound and straightened out his uniform, grabbing his hat from the backseat and then after taking one last deep breath got out of the car. He was met almost immediately by an entourage both of military and none military personnel and not a single one of them looked happy to see him. He quickly saluted the man who appeared to be in charge and waited for a reply; it was reluctant but the man eventually saluted back and the tension eased slightly.

"What brings you to Woodlawn Brigadier-General Loxley?"

_Loxley!? Oh I am so killing Stark when I get back._

"Security detail, Colonel Lloyd. The higher ups thing there could be some issues and have asked me to make an assessment of this facility." Clint's voice was clear and authoritive.

Colonel Lloyd was still not looking happy but he grudgingly seemed to accept Clint's reasons, although he insisted on contacting their superiors. Hawkeye nodded stiffly in agreement as the first obstacle in the plan was encountered; fortunately it was one they had been prepared for. While 'surveying' the systems Tony had discovered that the only form of communication that Woodlawn had with the outside world was a single phone line and phone lines were fortunately easy to hack and even easier to divert.

Apparently.

The phone rang three times before it was answered and the archer let out a breath he wasn't aware he'd been holding when a familiar voice sounded from the receiver.

"Good afternoon Council office how may I help you?" Bruce's voice sounded rough and there was a brash, impatient tone to it.

The Colonel grimaced.

"This is Colonel Lloyd at Woodlawn; I need to speak with the council regarding a security assessment."

Over the line Clint could hear the physicist huff in annoyance that the archer could assume was at least half genuine. Bruce hated to put himself in the spotlight but out of all of the team he was one of the least known and therefore the easiest to pass off as someone else.

"The council is currently in a demanding meeting and have asked not to be disturbed."

If Clint hadn't known it was Bruce on the line and that this was part of a plan he might have felt sorry for Colonel Lloyd under normal circumstances; he'd dealt with more than enough snarky secretaries to know his pain.

"It is urgent I speak with them."

"And I said that isn't possible." The physicist snapped back with an aggressiveness that made the archer proud.

Lloyd looked about ready to spit nails or at the very least slam the phone down, apparently not taking kindly to having his base invaded and then sassed by a glorified answering machine.

"Listen you, I have personnel here claiming they have been ordered on a security assessment that was _not_ discussed with _me_ and I think I have the right to know what the hell is going on in my own damn base." The Colonel's voice was standoffish.

There was a long exasperated sigh before Bruce spoke again.

"I apologize Sir by my instructions were resolute, the council members are not to be disturbed. However I do have access to the system and will be able to verify whether or not the personnel in question is supposed to be there."

It was as if Lloyd had seen Heaven, Valhalla and the Elysian Fields all at once, the look of joyful relief that crossed his face almost made Clint laugh out loud. He wished he had been able to take a photo if only to embarrass the hell out of Banner later.

"That would be acceptable."

There was some brief muttering over the phone as the physicist simulated accessing the information and then came back on the line.

"This is the Woodlawn facility right..." Lloyd mumbled his agreement "... Then a Brigadier-General _Loxley_ is cleared to be there on security assessment."

The tone in which Bruce spoke his alias made Clint grimace as he added another member to his 'dead after this mission' list, clearly Stark had not been the mastermind behind this particular pet name and boy were those two idiots going to know his _displeasure_.

Realizing that he slipped off topic he quickly reigned himself in just in time to see Lloyd slam the phone down. He ran a hand through his dirty blond hair and shot an exasperated look at Clint.

"Looks like you're with us then Sir... Welcome to Woodlawn."

The archer couldn't suppress the vicious smile that crossed his lips and hoped that Natasha's end of things was going just as smoothly.

* * *

Natasha's half of the mission was going along _swimmingly_ ; an appropriate choice of word considering she was currently wading through... Well she tried not to think about it. The climb up the cliff-face had been taxing but nothing she hadn't had to do before, if anything it had given her a good estimation of where her skills were currently at and she hadn't been disappointed. It seemed that living in the tower with the rest of the Avengers had done nothing to dent her field-effectiveness.

She finally made it to the end of the murky tunnel and latched onto the ladder that led to the upper levels, climbing with the speed of the arachnids she was named after. Glad to be out of the stinking tunnel Natasha's quickly stripped out of her upper layer of clothing revealing the familiar cat suit and grabbed the case Stark had given her; flicking it open.

Inside there was a small pair of what appeared to be shades and a small snake-like bot made of an unusual crystalline substance. Widow slipped on the shades and instantly a whole world erupted into life before her eyes and a familiar voice began speaking into her ear.

"Good-afternoon Miss Romanoff."

Natasha smirked "Hello JARVIS, shall we get this show on the road?"

The small bot in the case sprang to life and headed toward the nearest air ventilation pipe, cutting its way inside with ruthless efficiency. Behind the lenses the assassin marveled as the world of the bot opened before her in stunning high definition and she had to wonder whether or not Stark had pulled something like this before. The moves felt practiced which when dealing with Tony usually meant they were. As if sensing her question JARVIS spoke directly to her.

"Sir has had to undertake a few industrial espionage projects over the years and the robot you currently control is a product of that. He calls this version of the device the 'Natasha'."

The Widow wondered whether she should be offended or not by that but knowing Stark it was probably meant as some kind of obscure compliment. Within minutes the bot had made it to the outer-shell of the main server room and Natasha felt her breath catch. From the bots position she could see the ridiculous security parameters that had been implemented first hand; motion, sound and heat sensors, randomly fluctuating laser grid and what looked like a tri-hexagonal digital combination lock.

"I know this is probably a redundant question but how on earth is that going to get through all that?"

Natasha could practically feel the AI's smirk, somewhat unnerving considering that JARVIS had no physical form.

"The 'Natasha' has been equipped with the latest cloaking technology making it completely invisible to all known sensors and the crystalline substance it is made from diverts the laser beams around it's form so the beam is not broken while at the same time keeps all the mechanics inside intact."

The assassin couldn't help herself and whistled in appreciation; the billionaire had really outdone himself this time. That was of course if it all worked at right time. Natasha sat quietly and watched as the robot snaked it's way along the floor completely unfazed by the security measures, climbing the wall to the panel controlling the lock. Natasha tried not to feel grossed out as she watched a disturbingly tentacle like thing emerge from within the crystalline folds and jam itself into the lock.

Through the HUD she could see the computer processing the thousand upon millions of different combinations in the blink of an eye and waited with bated breath. Finally after ten agonizing minutes there was a click as the lock depressed and a voice announced 'Server room open, security parameters disabled.'

Quicker than she'd ever moved before Natasha ran to the now open room, a smug grin on her face. She padded across the floor to the server room entrance and slipped inside quietly, constantly aware for any threats.

The first thing that hit her was the noise; the constant thrum of electronics whirring against her skin in a not entirely pleasant manner. The second was the sheer size of the room; the massive server blocks would have even dwarfed Thor and would have been intimidating to someone who was unprepared for it. Fortunately this was not Natasha's first Rodeo.

"Okay, where am I going JARVIS?"

"I believe the main server block is at the far end of the room Miss Romanoff."

The Widow stalked along to corridor focused solely on her target and soon the main server bank came into view. She made quick work of the outer casing and let the bot set to work on extracting the data, watching it's progress through the network on the shades. After fighting its way through several firewalls and a number of other cyber defenses it finally hit upon the files they were looking for and Natasha felt herself sigh in relief. The download was quick and painless and within minutes the 'Natasha' was unhooked and the assassin was ready to go.

She retraced her steps through the server room not even pausing as she moved into the adjoining room, something she was about to learn was a mistake.

The muzzle of the gun pressed into the base of her skull and Natasha cursed her carelessness. Even worse she couldn't afford to take the man down, he was technically an innocent and she had her own issues concerning innocents.

"Well there missy I think you have something that doesn't belong to you..." The man spoke into his walkie-talkie "Intruder has been apprehended in main server room, request security team."

_Fuck._

* * *

A barrage of Russian swear-words and a mental ass-kicking later Natasha found herself being led to what appeared to be the main security room by a disturbingly large group of guards. As she entered the assassin spotted a familiar figure sitting at the table and felt a strange sense of calm washed over her.

"Ah, excellent... I see you caught my infiltrator." Clint crowed and walked over to Natasha, removing the restraints.

"Your infiltrator?" An older man with blond hair gasped, looking livid.

Hawkeye shot the man a 'well duh' look and sat back down at the desk.

"Of course Colonel Lloyd, who else would she be working for? I was entrusted to test this facility and how am I meant to do it without actually staging an infiltration?"

The Widow hid a smile at the flustered looks on the server teams faces as they tried and failed to fault Clint's logic. The guy who had been called Colonel Lloyd still looked furious but seemed unwilling to challenge Clint over it.

"However I must say I am impressed, my agent here is one of the _finest_ and you managed to apprehend her."

Clint shot her an amused look and she scowled at the thinly veiled insult, the bastards had gotten lucky nothing more and she was going to make sure Hawkeye _knew_ that. But not until they were in the car and far away from people that would _actually listen_ to Clint, he did after all have a rather twisted sense of humor and she'd been the victim of it on more than one occasion.

"Uh... Sir, if you're finished with your assessment then perhaps it time we should leave." Natasha prompted, giving her partner a hard look.

The archer looked momentarily uncomfortable as he spied the look being thrown his way but quickly slipped back into his persona.

"I believe you're right agent, I have a full report to write after all and I shall be most glowing in my assessment of this facilities security."

This seemed to soothe the rankled feelings of the team and they seemed quite content to let him and Natasha go, at least for the time being. The two of them made a swift beeline for the exit and practically sprinted to the car which was still parked into the garage.

"How long do you reckon we've got?" Clint asked, hastily stripping off his jacket and throwing it in a heap in the back of the car.

"About five minutes tops, unless of course they're really stupid."

The archer shrugged considering both possibilities feasible outcomes and slid into the front seat of the car while Natasha dove into the back seat, depositing the case with the robot in. Without even needing to hear the order from the woman Clint put his foot down and sped out of the base, just about avoiding the gate as it closed shut. The assassin let out a sigh of relief as the car drove out of sight of the base not wanting to be there when they discovered that they had been royally played.

"So Nat, was getting caught part of your escape plan?"

Natasha kicked the back of Clint's seat without any remorse and took great pleasure as she heard the breath rush from his lungs in shock.

"I'll take that as a no then…" He wheezed in response and Natasha kicked again, this time causing the car to swerve.

"Okay, Okay I get it… stop kicking me already."

The Widow just smirked in the back seat and pulled the case onto her lap, pulling up the files they'd just _acquired_. Most of it was stuff that she couldn't even begin to understand, a lot of biochemistry and nanotechnology, there was however something that caught her eye and it caused her to frown. Clint caught the look in the rear-view mirror and felt his stomach flip anxiously, that look never bode well.

"Nat… What's in there?"

She maneuvered herself into the front seat and placed the case on Clint's lap while at the same time commandeering the steering wheel. Taking the cue for what it was he flicked down the pages and pages of text and equations becoming more confused with each passing moment.

"I don't see what I'm meant to be looking at…"

Natasha rolled her eyes, keeping the car steady.

"The signatories Clint look at the signatories."

Clint looked.

Then frowned.

_Well fuck._

Amidst the various council members signatures there was one that shouldn't have belonged there but for whatever reason it was and they'd thought this situation couldn't have gotten any more complicated but it appeared they were wrong.

Tony was going to Flip. The. Fuck. Out.

Because as if finding out your father was alive after being supposedly dead for twenty five years wasn't enough to push you over the edge, then discovering that the sort of step-father who became a traitorous, murderous bastard had a part in hiding the fact said father was alive and neglecting to tell you certainly would.

This could only end badly.

"Fucking Obadiah Stane."

~End Chapter Twelve~

*Rubin is Russian for 'ruby' and Shakhter is Russian for 'miner'. I kinda see Nat picking something like that as a pet name for Clint because he sort of brought her out of the darkness into the light but it's not an overly affectionate word and Clint plays on it by calling her a precious gem… Meh it made sense in my head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we have another piece of the puzzle! Or rather another reason for shit to hit the fan! Sorry about the Widow/ Hawkeye heavy chapter but it needed to be done. However next chapter... Pissed Tony = Fun to write.
> 
> I loves all yo' faces


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tony is angry, Bruce plays therapist and Steve attempts to be reassuring.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh.... Sorry this took so long, been a bit of a weird few weeks for me and for the record BEING ILL SUCKS!
> 
> Warnings: Angry!Tony is ANGRY! Therefore foul language ahoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: They still ain't ine *Sobs*

Chapter Thirteen

It was a rather subdued duo of S.H.I.E.L.D agents the re-entered the tower. Natasha and Clint were still trying to work their way through the rather disturbing revelation they had already discovered in the 'Project Ragnarok' files and although they were professionals to the core they were dreading sharing this information. The elevator door slid open on the communal area and both of the agents were happy to see it blissfully empty or at least so they thought.

"How did it go guys?" Steve's voice sounded tired.

The pair walked into the area as the blond sat up from the prone position he'd been taking up on the couch. He shot them a weary smile as he shuffled across giving Natasha and Clint space to sit down beside him. They took the pro-offered seats with an ominous silence that the super soldier couldn't say he was comfortable with.

"What happened?"

The two assassins looked at one another and sighed handing the case to Steve, who looked at it with an honesty curiosity that belied it's contents.

"Does the name Obidiah Stane mean anything to you?" Natasha asked.

Blond eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"It rings a bell but I can't think where from." He replied honesty.

"Stane was Howard Stark's business partner, his closest friend and a major share-holder in Stark Industries until his death four years ago."

Clint stated as he stood and walked to the wet bar, pouring a copious amount of some indiscernable liquid into two tumblers before heading back and handing one to Natasha; which she graciously accepted. Beside her Steve started to recollect the briefing packet Fury had given him when the initiative had initially formed and found himself frowning as the pieces slotted together.

"He's the one who had Tony kidnapped isn't he?" There was a dark edge to the soldiers voice.

Both Widow and Hawkeye nodded, rolling their tumblers around in their hands restlessly.

"So what does he have to do with all this?"

The pair looked weary and Natasha downed her drink in one before pulling up the files to show Steve what the problem was. Blue eyes went wide with shock before hardening like diamond; the muscles in his jaw flexing as he ground his teeth together in anger.

"That son of a bitch..."

Neither Natasha nor Clint could argue with the statement.

"Have you told Tony yet?"

Again the duo shook their heads and Steve repressed a sigh instantly understanding why they hadn't gone straight to Stark with the information. This had the potential to break the billionaire and the more people prepared for the fallout the better. But Tony had to know that the two spies were back by now and was likely to come searching for the answers at any minute.

So pre-emptive strike it was then.

"Come on you two, no time like the present." Steve's voice was authoritive.

They both looked at him like he was crazy but didn't disobey. The three of them stood and headed to the elevator; Steve asking Tony's location as he pressed the call button.

"Sir is currently residing in the workshop with Doctor Banner..." JARVIS replied "... He was enquiring as to when Agents Romanoff and Barton were to make an appearance." while Tony was fairly bouncing

Which roughly translated into; he's been bitching like a three year old so can someone please hurry up and get down here before he blows something up and/or pushes Doector Banner too far.

It honestly amazed them how much could be red in what the AI wasn't saying sometimes and wondered if the billionaire had intentionally programed him like that.

The elevator sped down to Tony's workshop and stopped with a jolt before the doors slid open allowing them access to candyland. The billionaire was seated at one of the many workbenches littered around the room, Bruce hovering over one shoulder watching with interest. They didn't even notice the three of their team-mates enter and it wasn't until Steve gave an overly loud but polite cough that either man turned around.

The physicist for the most part looked relieved while Tony was fairly bouncing up and down on ine chair with barely contained excitement. Upon finally becoming aware that they had visitors the billionaire leapt from his seat and strode toward them a triumphant look on his face.

''So Wonder-Twins, how'd it go? Did my baby do me proud?"

Both Natasha and Clint bit back a groan at the awful nickname but they supposed it could have been a lot worse. Natasha handed tire case to the billionaire a small smile on ne face and a cheeky glint in her green eyes.

"Yes your baby did you proud Stark although I was more intrigued by it's designation."

For a brief moment Tony blanched and tne Widow looked smug as all eyes turned on the billionaire.

"I take it JARVIS told you?..." Stark rolled his eyes then gave a soft snort of laughter. "Of course he did... Damn traitor."

''You did not give me any instructions regarding information on the device Sir. I assumed that informing Agent Romanoff of it's details would not be something that you would object to." JARVIS replied tartly causing the congregation to simultaneously crack a smile.

The billionaire threw up his hands in mock frustration.

"Sass... Sass and snark is all I get around here."

"Welcome to our world Tony." Bruce retorted, shutting down the holo-screens.

"Sass and snark, all I'm saying."

The group just shrugged and watched as Tony withdrew the bot from the case and hooked it up to JARVIS's core processor. The download took seconds and less than a minute later the entirety of 'Project Ragnarok' was laid out before them. The billionaire squinted as he skimmed through the opening pages and Steve, Clint and Natasha waited for the penny to drop.

There was a crash as the mug of coffee slipped from Tony's grasp and colided with the floor.

"You are _fucking kidding me_..."

The billionaire rounded on the rest of his team; eyes wild and angry. Bruce recoiled slightly looking confused while the rest of the Avengers just stared solemnly at their friend knowing the betrayal the man was experiencing.

"Tony..? What's in there?" The physicist asked genuienly concerned.

Tony was actually shaking with rage; fists balled at his sides unsure whether to lash out or retreat. In the end he decided on the first option.

The crash of metal echoed around the shop as various pieces of the Iron Man suit were flung fom the work bench. Bruce stepped forward to stop the other man but stopped when Steve placed a hand on his shoulder and shook his head. The random destruction continued scraps of tech and circuitry flying everywhere as the billionaire unleashed his fury on the room. After a few minutes the man seemed to burn himself out and collapsed on a nearby chair dropping his head into his hands.

"Get out." Tony's voice held no room for argument.

The rest of the team bar Bruce looked at one another and hesitantly made their way toward the door, the physicist hovering uncertainly; unwilling to leave his friend at an obviously fragile moment.

"I thought I told you to get out Banner."

The physicist snorted "You honestly think I'm going anywhere after that?"

Tony lifted his gaze and glared half-heartedly at the other man while Bruce folded his arms across his chest.

"Fuck off Banner."

"Nope, not going to happen."

"Go _the fuck_ away." The billionaire snarled slamming his hands down on the metal work-surface in attempt to intimidate the other man.

The physicist merely rolled his eyes and stood his ground.

"You think that's going to work, really?"

Tony just continued to glare, trying to incinerate the other man through sheer force or at least will him out of the room so he could break down in peace. The staring contest continued and Tony felt his grip beginning to slip, he could see the grey patches at the corner of his vision get bigger and the shop suddenly seemed far, far too small. He dragged in a breath feeling his whole body shake; he'd never been good at dealing with stuff like this. Betrayal was something he fought to avoid as much as humanly possible but it still happened, kept happening, even when the fuckers were supposed to be dead. Especially since death seemed to be more of a lifestyle choice rather than a permanent fixture at the moment.

He was drawn from his thoughts as a warm hand placed itself on his shoulder and a calm reassuring voice told him to breathe.

Breathe? Wasn't he breathing? He distinctly remembered taking in a deep breath and ouch there was the carbon dioxide build up right now. Slowly he exhaled and the room seemed to swim back into focus and a concerned looking Bruce along with it.

"Uh…" He gasped awkwardly

The physicist didn't say anything in return, didn't move, just kept staring, silently; his hand a firm, grounding presence on his shoulder. After a few more minutes the attack had passed and Tony found that he could breathe much more easily. He looked around the chaos that was now the shop and tried not to wince, he'd really to town on some of the equipment.

"Um... Well that could have gone better." He started lamely.

Bruce shrugged and backed away. "I've seen worse, believe me."

The billionaire flashed a small guilty grin and stood up, stretching somewhat over-dramatically whilst surveying the rest of the damage and pointedly ignoring the brown eyes he could feel boring into his back.

"Do you feel better?"

The question was earnest bordering just on the right side of concern and Tony felt himself grimace. He really didn't want to talk about feelings right now, not when there were so many bubbling just beneath the thin veneer of control he'd managed to wrestle within himself. Dear fucking God, how did Bruce deal with this shit every fucking day?

"Not really." He replied honestly, because if anyone deserved honesty it was the man stood in front of him.

"That's to be expected I guess, to be honest I would have been more concerned if you'd said yes." Bruce replied, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

The billionaire stood silently trying to ignore that the last twenty minutes had even happened and turned back to the screen, pushing down the dark thoughts circling around his mind. Bruce seemed quite content to let him do so; knowing that the other man would talk to him when and if he felt like it. He'd been in this place himself many times before after all and he knew that it wasn't best to push until absolutely necessary.

And besides distraction was quite often a good way of helping to deal with these kinds of things; as long as you didn't become _too_ distracted.

"So what have we got here?" He asked casually even though he already knew the answer, trying to gauge where Tony's head was at more accurately.

The billionaire didn't speak, a near miracle under normal circumstances; just read through the files in stony silence ever vigilant that he was under the physicist's watchful gaze. The more he red the more angry he was becoming and it was taking all of his willpower not to lash out and break something again.

How could anyone _use_ someone like this?

If it had been anyone other than that scum sucker Obidiah he wouldn't have believed it possible for someone to be so inhumane but the bastard had certainly proven himself callous enough to pull a stunt like this. He'd stolen the arc reactor right out of his chest after all; putting his business partner in the freezer to experiment on must have been a breeze in comparison. He hadn't had to do any of the dirty work, just signed away another man's life all in the name of 'progress and prosperity'.

Fucking shit-house.

"They made him a fucking lab-rat that's what." He choked out, fighting down the conflicting emotions warring within him.

Bruce took a step forward hoping that his closer proximity would distract the other man. He could see the other man starting to crash again and tight now they needed Tony, needed him to stay focused on this and not go flying off half-cocked to make those he deemed 'responsible' for this pay. Although admittedly in Stane's case it was already a bit too late in the game for that, Tony had already seen to that but the physicist suspected if he had the opportunity the billionaire would happily kill the man again.

Tony growled as the information danced before his eyes, temper and destructive urges flaring wildly. He'd never been one for self-control and now that miniscule thread was close to snapping.

Realising that this situation was quickly derailing he decided to fall back on an old coping mechanism, that although not favorable would certainly help to calm the maelstrom of emotions and rapidly darkening thoughts.

"I need a drink."

He didn't wait for a reply, standing quickly and exiting the shop leaving a frowning Bruce behind. The man could frown all he wanted it wasn't going to stop Tony for a second, he needed the mental vacancy that inebriation brought right now in order to bring everything into perspective.

At least that was what he was telling himself.

He made it to the penthouse in record time and descended on the bar like a man possessed. The first two shots slid down his throat like molten honey and after that a lot of it became a blur; a cold, empty blur that tasted like oak and smelt vaguely like vanilla. Time seemed to ebb by, like a thick soup and by the time the billionaire realised he was no longer alone in the penthouse he'd drank more than enough to not care.

"Tony..."

Tony frowned into his glass absently noting that is was once again empty. He'd honestly figured that Bruce would have followed him what he had not been expecting was Captain fucking America to be standing in front of him watching him get wasted.

"What?" He snapped back in response.

Steve looked uncomfortable but his face hardened in resolve.

"Mind if I join you?"

The billionaire almost dropped his drink in shock at the request but there was a weary earnestness around Steve that he just couldn't refuse.

"Sure thing Cap, free country and all that jazz."

Steve took a seat and pulled a bottle of premium vodka toward him, pouring himself a generous amount and knocking it back like water. Tony couldn't quite believe his eyes and gawked openly at the soldier, he'd always thought that Steve was the epitome of, well 'goodness' and seeing the other man drinking somehow didn't sit right with him. Steve seemed to notice the stares and grinned awkwardly.

"I don't really drink that often... I don't feel it but sometimes the action can be calming."

Tony couldn't imagine not being able to feel the affects of the alcohol in his system and as much as it pained him to admit it; it was a life he wouldn't be able to function in. He grimaced in sympathy for Steve's predicament.

"Can't imagine that personally, but then again I'm not immune to alcohol."

"I know." Steve replied without condescension.

The silence stretched between the two men as both of continued to imbibe, each of them tiptoeing around the questions that they desperately wanted to ask. Finally the tension snapped and the billionaire gave into temptation.

"What you said... To Howard..."

The soldier didn't even hesitate in his response.

"I meant every word I said Tony, I thought I already told you that."

There was a slight up-turn of lips mimicking a smile.

"Little bit of reassurance goes a long way Cap..."

Steve snorted lightly and rolled his eyes. "Don't you mean an ego-boost there Stark?"

Tony shrugged and took another long swig of his drink.

"Ego-boost is such an ugly phrase Captain, for shame."

"Whatever Stark."

"Ooo back to last names are we? I'm hurt."

The billionaire stuck out his lip in a mock pout and the blonde couldn't help but laugh in response before sighing deeply. It was so easy to mask over what was happening with this playful banter and although Tony was acting like nothing was wrong; the fact he was here drowning his sorrows in extremely expensive booze spoke volumes. Tony seemed to sense the shift in the other man and let out his own long suffering sigh.

"Should have known this wouldn't last." He turned on the barstool to face Steve fully. "Come on then hit me with it."

The soldier looked uncomfortable but didn't shy away from Tony's piercing and surprisingly sharp stare and when he answered his voice was low and solemn.

"What... What did they do... To Howard I mean. I saw the files but most of it... Most of it was just gobbledygook to me."

There was a brief moment where Tony honestly considered not answering but he saw the stiff set of Steve's shoulders and realised for the first time that maybe he wasn't the only one taking this whole situation badly. He caught the other man's gaze and saw the same burning desire for vengeance he felt himself.

"The short version... They pumped him full of the serum to boost his healing properties and then decided to use him a breeding ground for every known virus and some unknown ones in order to create vaccines. But if Stane's involved I have a feeling that the 'vaccine' part of the whole thing is just a ruse of some sorts."

"Meaning?"

Tony's jaw twitched "They used him to make biological weapons."

Steve hoped he looked as sickened as he felt because that was about one of the most ghastly, disturbing and vile things he'd ever heard. The billionaire looked just as revolted as he did and Steve couldn't stop the curse escaping his lips even if he'd wanted to.

"Mother-Fuckers."

Tony couldn't have put it better himself.

~End Chapter Thirteen~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Urgh! This chapter caused me so many problems! and totally ended up different than I envisioned it but I'm kinda glad I went with some Steve/Tony bonding.
> 
> Apologies for suckiness... My brain has been having an 'I want to make Smaell feel shit week' which admittedly sucks.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Bruce gets even more disturbed by what the WSC has done to Howard, the tower receives an unexpected guest and the Avengers suit up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG I'm so sorry this has taken so long. Been suffering from a bout of depression that has literally drained any and all creative influences *Sobs*
> 
> Anywho enjoy the chapter! Although I am expecting the hate afterwards XD
> 
> Warnings: The usual, language and some character torture XD.

Daddy Dearest.

Chapter Fourteen.

Bruce worked long into the next morning analysing all of the data to the best of his ability and what he found horrified him. it wasn't any wonder they had kept this so secret; what they had done to Howard had broken just about every ethical, moral and human rights law ever written. The depravity and abuse of power they'd been allowed to get away with was obscene and it made him feel sick and very _v_ _ery_ angry.

He knew it was slightly hypocritical of him to judge what they had done considering his own less than stellar past; but even he'd had his limits and this had crossed just about every one of them.

The physicist let out a weary sigh and pulled off his glasses, massaging his eyes with the palm of his hand. Their problems however didn't end with the WSC; after taking a fine tooth comb to all of the medical reports Bruce had discovered a few rather disturbing things.

Firstly the sheer amount of viruses in Howard's body was mind boggling he had a veritable zoo of the bacterial worlds best and brightest; by which he meant deadly and contagious. The only reason he was still alive after being pumped full of what was essentially poison was the serum and the enhanced anti-bodies it had allowed his body to produce.

Secondly was the nano-machines; the little blighters were _everywhere_. The physicist had come to the conclusion that they were what had been used to introduce the viruses into the elder Stark's system. But, and here was the mother of all buts; they'd been designed to work in a cryogenic environment now that Howard was back in the land of the waking how would they react to their change in environment? Would they just break down inside his system or had they been programmed to do something far, far worse?

Even with the information he had there were still too many variables.

He needed Tony's input, the billionaire understood machines in a way he never would but right now he knew that was impossible. Tony needed space from this whole debacle to try and find his feet after they had rather spectacularly been swept out from underneath him.

Bruce just hoped he didn't take too long.

Aware that he was unlikely to get right to the heart of the matter without the other man Bruce decided that it was as good a time as any to take a break. He could see the thin streaks of dawn creeping around the skyline of New York and his stomach began to protest the lack of sustenance. Mind made up he headed up to the communal floor by taking the stairs, intent on making himself a light meal and possibly scoring some edible leftovers.

The communal area was bathed in darkness; the only light source was the flickering television which was showing some ridiculous tele-shopping channel. Bruce found himself snorting softly at the ridiculous adverts, honestly who bought this stuff? He made his way to the counter quietly and fished out the ingredients for a simple cheese and tomato sandwich, smiling as he saw the plate of leftover spring rolls in the refrigerator with his name on. Content that he'd got enough to keep him going for a little while the physicist headed back toward the stairwell intent on eating and then crashing out for a few hours.

"Going somewhere _Doctor_ Banner?"

Bruce froze, the plate of food slipping from his hands and shattering on the floor. He knew that voice, knew it with a cold certainty that made his heart pound and the other guy roar; begging to be free. Slowly he turned back around keeping his breathing measured and controlled, trying not to let the blind fear or anger win.

He thought he'd been safe here, Tony had _told_ him he was safe here.

But proof to the contrary was sat on the large plush couch as if he owned the place.

"Ross." Bruce could barely find his voice.

The man in question was sat with his back to the physicist and for the briefest of moments Bruce seriously considered walking behind his oldest tormentor and snapping his neck in one swift movement. However brief the notion was it appeared the other man picked up on it and the physicist could practically see the man's smug grin; as if he was proving every thing Ross had ever said about him.

"Not a good idea Banner, I'm here on official business and if anything happens to me they will know _exactly_ who to blame."

The threat was thinly veiled and Bruce instantly caught on to Ross's meaning.

_We will pin it on Stark and watch him burn._

And Bruce refused to let Tony take the fall for something that he had done in a moment of weakness, as much pleasure as the act would give him. Ross seemed to sense his compliance and patted the seat next to him, inviting the physicist to sit.

"I'd rather stand." Bruce replied defiantly, sounding more bold than he felt.

There was a snort of derisive laughter.

"If you think your little friends are going to swoop in you are very much mistaken. I had this floor locked down the second you set foot on it, now _sit_ Banner."

Bruce didn't move an inch his survival instinct kicking into overdrive. He could vaguely hear the shrill scream of his heart monitor and knew he needed to _calm the fuck down_ but when the man who had instigated a large amount of his worst nightmares was sat before him it was pretty difficult to do so. He took long, deep breaths willing his heart to slow, it really wouldn't be the greatest idea to let the Hulk out on a still slumbering city.

There would be other opportunities for the other guy later and in a controlled environment at that.

The physicist padded forward and sat on the furthest corner of the couch away from Ross, shooting quick glances around the room to try and ascertain where his lackeys were hiding.

"You can stop fidgeting Banner, I came alone."

Bruce mentally snorted at that one; that's what they _all_ said.

"And believe it or not I am not here for you..." There was a definite hint of angry bitterness to his tone at that particular statement and it gave Bruce a brief moment of satisfaction "I'm here to deliver a message."

This did little to reassure the physicist but he didn't voice his concerns. Instead he stared blankly at the wide-screen television where a woman face had just appeared. She was stern looking and there was a no nonsense attitude radiating off her in spades; Bruce instantly knew that this was not a woman to be messed with.

"This is a message to the terrorist group known as the Avengers. For far too long you have flouted the laws of this world and we will stand for it no more. Recently you stole something from your world and the people you say you protect, items and information of great importance. In view of your previous though reluctant assistance we offer you this choice; return what you stole or face the full might of your planet. You have until noon today to comply. "

Bruce felt the snarl work it's way up his throat, the vaguest hint of green tinting his vision.

How _dare_ they.

How _fucking dare_ they.

After everything the Avengers had done for them, the amount of times they had saved their asses this, _this_ was how they repaid them? By stabbing them in the back, by calling them terrorists?

The vile ungrateful bastards.

Anger was burning like acid through his veins and it was getting harder and harder to keep himself in check. Beside him Ross just shot him a sick grin and stood up, eyes intent and focused on his every move as if waiting for him to slip up.

"I'll be seeing you soon Banner, _very_ soon."

Bruce didn't offer the man a reply instead focusing at keeping the other guy at bay; the Hulk was baying for freedom and with Ross in the general vicinity Bruce couldn't predict that there wouldn't be a massacre. The General didn't seem fazed by the lack of response and casually walked out of the area. The physicist took a few deep breaths and calmed his rankled nerves before tentatively calling out.

"JARVIS..."

"I am here Doctor Banner, my apologies my systems were overridden by the intruder. I have informed Mr. Stark of the breach and he said he would be there ASAP."

"Thank you..." Bruce replied weakly as the adrenaline started to wear off.

Almost as soon as the words had left hid mouth the doors of the elevator doors slid open and out flew an enraged looking Tony.

"Banner, Bruce! Where are you?"

The billionaire stormed in and practically ran to his friends side as Bruce gestured.

"JARVIS said there was a security breach... What the hell happened?" He sounded furious.

"Fucking Ross is what happened."

Tony's face went pale almost immediately; he understood the implications of that asshole being in his tower and he didn't like any of them one bit. More than that he felt like he'd let Bruce down, he promised the other man a safe haven free from persecution and the fact the one person above all others that would threaten that haven just waltzed in with ease burned him to his very core.

"Shit..."

Bruce nodded in reply, a hollow look in his eyes that made the billionaire flinch. Fuck no, this was not happening; he would not let his friend revert back to that skittish, hunted man he'd been when he'd first arrived at the tower.

He _**would**_ _not_ allow it.

The haunted look remained for a few seconds longer and then it just seemed to vanish as if the physicist suddenly remembered something important and his expression hardened.

"He wasn't here for me, he was playing messenger boy for the Council... suffice to say they aren't very happy with us."

Tony could sense the anger behind his voice and suddenly felt nervous; if the message had managed to anger Bruce then the billionaire could be fairly certain it wasn't going to be one he wanted to hear.

"What did they say?" His voice was quiet.

The physicist sighed. "JARVIS playback please."

"Of course Doctor Banner."

The vile woman appeared on the screen again and repeated her ultimatum to the watching men. Tony felt his fist clench unconsciously as she waffled on and by the end he could completely understand Bruce's anger. The utter nerve of those bastards; trying to make them look like the bad guys here. (Admittedly they'd taken a broad context in regards to legality but nothing compared to them.) The Council honestly had a bloody cheek but right now the Avengers had more pressing things to deal with than ungrateful bunch of bigots.

Like an imminent tactical strike.

"JARVIS get the rest of the gang down here now and send a memo to all Stark-Industries employees at the tower informing them that today is an extra paid vacation day and no one is to come in under any circumstance."

"Of course Sir, shall I inform Ms. Potts of your plans?" The AI asked.

Tony hid the flinch; Pepper was going to be pissed at him for giving the whole company the day off but it was better than the alternative. He didn't want any civilians mixed up in this mess and he knew Pep's would understand when he explained it to her.

"Yeah, give her a heads up... Just don't tell her what's going on, I don't want her to start worrying."

"As you wish Sir."

The billionaire turned back to the slightly trembling Bruce and flashed his most reassuring smile.

"You okay big guy?"

Bruce nodded hesitantly, still looking a little pale. "Yeah... I guess so, just a bit of a shock."

Tony could understand that and he swore that something like this would not happen again; if Ross thought he could just waltz in here whenever he wanted he had another thing coming.

It was at this point that the rest of the team emerged from the elevator a mixture of annoyance and confusion on their faces, however at seeing the woman on the screen both Barton and Romanoff froze. Steve looked at the duo with curiosity and then back at the woman on the screen before frowning.

"What happened?" Steve asked authoritively.

Tony face looked thunderous and beside him Bruce looked shaken, admittedly not a good sign.

"Our friends at the WSC decided to pay us a visit, using Thaddeus 'thunder-cunt' Ross as messenger boy and catching Bruce on his own."

Beside him Steve heard Natasha suck in a breath and Clint mutter a expletive.

"I take it that isn't good then?"

Natasha shook her head. "Ross has been after Bruce for years, the fact he didn't take advantage of the situation does not leave me with any optimism as to what the Councils message is."

Well that didn't bode well.

The tension in the room was palpable as the five Avengers stared at one another as the council-woman's message played again. Tony was pleased to see that the rest of the teams reaction had been virtually identical to his own, the looks of disgust attesting to that and under any other circumstance he might have found the look on Steve's face amusing.

But not now, not with so much at sake.

"So what's the plan Cap?"

The soldier looked startled by the question but recovered quickly, slipping into his 'Captain America' persona.

"We're all in agreement that we are not handing back Howard right?"

There was a unanimous nod from the team; they'd already come this far it seemed redundant to give up now, they were in it for the long haul.

"Then our first priority is to minimise civilian casualties and keep Howard safe until we can figure out what to do with him."

Tony stood up and brushed himself down, looking resolute.

"Civilians are a done thing, I already gave JARVIS the order to give everyone in the tower the day off. Other than that there isn't much we can do."

On the couch Bruce still looked fidgety and he cleared his throat grabbing everyone's attention. He tried not to squirm as they looked at him and spoke clearly.

"I don't think it's a good idea to move Howard."

That caused a reaction, both Tony and Steve looked shocked while the assassins merely looked curious. Bruce continued.

"I've been researching his condition and I'm not convinced he's safe. The nano-machines are in a state of flux in hid body and I can't predict how they are going to react when the homeostasis finally ends."

The majority of the room looked confused at this but the physicist turned his gaze to Tony and saw the solemn, tired look on the billionaire's face as he connected the dots. Bruce felt his heart ache as the understanding dawned and he watched his friend come to terms with a rather frightening reality that he hadn't considered before.

"No offence Doc but can you put that into English?" Steve asked thoroughly baffled.

Bruce went to reply but Tony cut across him.

"He could be a walking chemical bomb."

"What?"

The billionaire sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"That is what you were saying right?..." Bruce nodded "The nano-machines, the little robots in his blood were made to work in a body that was frozen. Now that Howard is no longer frozen we can't predict how they'll react, they might do nothing; they might overload his system with all the viruses they're carrying or admittedly worst case scenario here; they might go haywire and commit the mechanical equivalent of suicide. Taking Howard and who knows else with him, never mind the release of all that shit into the atmosphere."

Tony suddenly felt like he had aged twenty years, everything was coming back to bite him in the ass and there was nothing he could do to change that. Even worse he had dragged the rest of the team down with him and now they were facing a fight that by right should have nothing to do with them. It made him feel sick to the stomach that his impulsiveness had caused so much trouble and was going to taint some of the best people he'd ever known.

He couldn't ask them to do this, he couldn't ask them to give up everything for his mistake.

A hand placed itself on Tony's shoulder and the billionaire stared up into Steve's earnest blue eyes and it was if the man had jumped right into his thoughts.

"Whatever nonsense your brain is concocting stops right now. Sure you may have started this but we chose to stay regardless and we damn well ain't leaving until it's finished. No one threatens one of us and gets away with it."

Tony couldn't find the words to express the gratitude he felt; not that any of them would have taken it seriously anyway. Instead he nodded and cleared his throat in an attempt to dislodge the lump there and for a few moments the silence was comfortable.

"Someone needs to talk to Stark senior and explain what's going on." Natasha piped up, looking primed and ready for anything.

"I'll do it."

All eyes turned to Tony and he shrugged nonchalantly at the sudden attention.

"Tony are you sure that's a good idea?" Bruce asked concerned, clearly remembering their last encounter.

Again the billionaire merely shrugged.

"Probably not... But I dragged him into this, the very least I can do is tell him what's happening to him as a result of that."

The physicist clearly wanted to object but decided to keep hid opinion to himself. It was clear that his friend needed to do this and who was he to stop him from regaining some kind of equilibrium?

"Fine but I'm coming with you, hopefully he won't be too much of an ass if there are two of us there."

Tony didn't argue, just offered a weak smile.

"Sure thing Doc."

Steve clapped his hands together his face resolute.

"Let's suit up team, we have until noon."

The Avengers didn't speak; just dispersed to prepare.

The WSC wanted a fight and a fight they would get.

~End Chapter Fourteen~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Basks in the hate*
> 
> Okay so I was mean there but looky, looky some actual plot! Comments are loved by all.
> 
> Thank you and goodnight!


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tony explains a few things to Howard and things go from bad to worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh... Tah-dah? Sorry this has taken so long... Real life hasn't been being fun to me recently T_T. Thank you so much to everyone you've all been awesome. 
> 
> Warnings: Language and spoiler for IM1 (As if you haven't seen it by now ;P)
> 
> Comments and feed back always appreciated.

Daddy Dearest

Chapter Fifteen.

The walk down the lab was awkward; the silence palpable, almost suppressive and it was something Tony despised immensely. Bruce was still pretty shaken from his encounter with Ross and he honestly couldn't blame the man for feeling like that. Admittedly the billionaire didn't have quite the experience Bruce had in torture but he'd experienced enough to know that some wounds never fully healed not matter how much you thought they had.

And in all honesty if _he_ ' _d_ been in Bruce's position.

He would have let the Hulk tear Ross to shreds, consequences be damned.

The bastard had more than earned it.

Of course he'd never tell Bruce _that_ particular piece of information, the man had more than enough issues with his alter-ego as it was. The last thing he needed now was to drive the already skittish man closer to fleeing, he needed all the allies he could get at the moment and in Bruce he not only had an ally but a friend, someone he could you know trust.

And admittedly trust was thin on the ground at the moment.

He pushed aside those thoughts and focused on what needed to be done because in all honesty Tony had no idea how he was going to approach this. It wasn't every day that you had to tell your father; who had been cryogenically frozen and presumed dead for the last twenty five years, that he could be a walking, talking time bomb of mass destruction. Oh and the people that did this to him kind of wanted him back as well and were prepared to take on and smear a group of _fucking_ _super-heroes_ to take him back.

Actually that had sounded pretty good, maybe he'd go with that. That was of course if Howard believed him in the first place, the billionaire was aware that Steve had talked to his old friend but the soldier hadn't indulged what they'd spoken about or how much he'd brought the other man up to date.

Fuck this was a mess.

And it looked like it was only going to get worse because they sure as shit didn't look like they were going to get any better.

They finally reached the lab and the awkwardness that had been strung between the two men became grim resolve, neither of them wanted to go in there and talk to the man but knew it was their responsibility. Tony quickly placed his hand on the panel; opening the door before his nerve gave out and as it slid open he took a deep breath and allowed 'Tony Stark; genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist' to take over.

Howard was sat in a chair with a scientific journal in his hand reading silently to himself, clearly immersed in the material and the billionaire noted with some amusement that it was Bruce's paper on anti-electron collisions. Tony had honestly forgotten he'd had that laying around the place. He turned to the physicist to see if he'd noticed the old codgers choice of material and was rewarded with a look of shock and an unmistakable tinge around the ears. Suddenly all of the trepidation seemed to melt away and Tony knew it was now or never.

He coughed, _loudly_.

Howard looked up from his reading with a mildly irritated look the didn't disappear when he saw who his guests were. However unlike usual he put his reading to one side and gave them both his undivided attention even if it was marred with a slight scowl.

"Anthony."

Tony had to admit _that_ threw him for a loop, he couldn't remember the last time his father had addressed him by his given name and not some degrading insult. However he would not give him the satisfaction of being addressed by his proper title, the old man had lost that privilege many years ago.

"Howard."

The elder Stark's expression was unreadable but Tony thought he may have seen a flicker of hurt in the dark eyes or perhaps that was just wishful thinking on his behalf.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?"

There was a slight sarcastic edge to Howard's tone but compared to his usual biting tone it was practically mellow. It appeared the dressing down he'd been given by Steve had actually made the man stop and think about what he was doing, something that Tony hadn't actually thought was possible.

The billionaire took a deep breath.

"We need to talk." He replied honestly.

Howard looked slightly taken aback and there was suspicion glowing in his eyes but he didn't voice it, instead he remained silent and gestured with his hand for his son to continue. Tony bit back the flash of annoyance and reminded himself that this was the most civil the man had ever been with him; that, and he had a job to do.

"We're here to brief you on the situation and see whether or not you have any useful information to add."

The older man's face turned slightly grim.

"What situation?"

The billionaire couldn't quite suppress the urge to flash a rough, cruel smile at the other man.

"The situation where you could possibly be a walking, talking chemical weapon and the people that made you like this want you back bad enough that they're willing to launch an aggressive smear campaign against a group of super-heroes."

Clearly Steve hadn't caught him up all that much because the look of shock and confusion of Howard's face was fucking _priceless_ and it took every ounce of Tony's resolve to not burst into slightly hysterical giggles.

"The people who did this...? ...Super-heroes?... What the hell is going on?" The older man's temper was starting to resurface and Tony felt his own anger begin to boil, time to get this done.

"You already know that you've been stick in a cold sleep for the last twenty-five years. What you didn't know was that while you were asleep the fuckers that took you pumped you full of a variant of the super-soldier serum that increased your healing rate and used you as a human germ farm to create 'vaccines' and in all likelihood chemical and biological weapons."

The billionaire practically spat the last words in disgust before turning his gaze back to Howard. The man's face had gone ashen and his eyes were wide with horrified anger, maybe the blunt approach hadn't been the wisest.

"They... They..." The indignant rage was preventing him from speaking and Howard's whole body was trembling with it.

Tony winced, all previous traces of hilarity evaporated in the blink of an eye.

"Yeah, they did and that isn't even the worse news. It appears that the nano-machines that they used to pump you full of all that shit are only stable in a cold-sleep environment; hence the walking talking weapon line, they could go loco at any minute or do absolutely nothing at all; we just don't know."

In hindsight the billionaire really should have expected what happened next, it was after all a reaction he frequented himself. Howard stood quickly and threw the neatest thing that came to hand at the wall with every ounce of his strength, a scream of frustration piercing the air. The pitcher of water exploded in a cacophony of sound and shards; liquid staining the walls as it was forcefully ejected from its previous sedate state. The elder stood there for a moment breathing heavily and glaring at his handy work before collapsing back into the chair and dropping his head into hands.

"Who, who did this to me?" Howard's voice was low and rough.

For the briefest of moments Tony genuinely considered lying to Howard and saying that they didn't know; not out of spite but out of sympathy and for the first time since he came back from Afghanistan Tony hated the man he had become. The man sat before him didn't _deserve_ his sympathy or his empathy but he couldn't stop himself, the innate _whatever the fuck_ this was wouldn't let him.

Steve would probably call it his morality or his conscience or some other such bullshit. All he knew was that it was a pain in the ass and he _hated_ it right now.

"We know that the World Security Council is involved they are the ones threatening us but they're mostly ghosts, just names on paper. There are a few people that we do know about though..."

Tony trailed off as he clamped down on the still present feelings of anger and betrayal and Howard's gaze shot up the same feelings burning in the wizened eyes.

_"Who?"_

The commanding tone of Howard's voice made the billionaire shrink a little inside, suddenly feeling like that tiny, frightened child again. He had to remind himself that this anger was not directed at him; it was directed at the bastards that had done _this_ to Howard. It didn't however stop Tony's voice coming out meek and cowed as he uttered one word barely loud enough to be heard.

"Obie."

The difference that one word made was startling; the anger seemed to just burn out replaced by betrayal and an unfathomable sadness. Tony wondered if he'd looked like that when he'd discovered the truth, a quick glance in Bruce's direction confirmed that the answer was probably yes.

"You're lying, you have to be Obie wouldn't do this to me."

The accusation held no real strength and the lost and utterly devastated tone made the billionaire's heart flip unpleasantly. He wholeheartedly understood what the other man was feeling right now having dealt with Obidiah's own betrayal several years earlier and he knew that Howard wouldn't fully believe him until he saw the proof of his treachery.

"JARVIS pull up Project Ragnarok document 2X4B."

"As you wish Sir."

Howard jumped as the AI responded clearly not expecting the other voice, he stared at the ceiling curiously before turning to the holographic screen. Tony watched as the man red through the document his emotions flickering between anger, hurt and betrayal. Eventually he settled on an expression that could only be described as pissed.

"That son of a fucking crack-whore! And to think I was going to give him control of the company, where is the fucking traitor? I want to fucking kill him."

Behind him Tony heard Bruce give a little gasp at Howard's blatant dismissal of his son but the billionaire merely shrugged in response. It wouldn't have surprised him if Howard had intended to leave the company to that back-stabber Stane, he'd always threatened as much. Honestly out of everyone _he_ ' _d_ been the most shocked when he'd been announced as successor to Stark Industries and Obidiah had just placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled.

Had he been plotting his downfall even then?

_Don't go there Tony, now is not the time._

He shook his head clear of the past and focused his attention on the man sitting in front of him, who was looking up at him expectantly.

"You're a little late to the 'lets kill Stane' party, he's been dead for about five years."

There was a icy coldness to Tony's reply that took all of the wind out of Howard's sails and he stared at his son waiting for the answers to a million and one questions that wouldn't be answered unless he asked.

So he started simple.

"What happened to him?"

Now that was the million dollar question. The billionaire was aware that the world at large thought that Stane had perished in a light aircraft accident and that only his betrayal was written in his S.H.I.E.L.D file (He'd _personally_ made sure of that.) Did he really want to reopen old wounds?

"I killed him."

The words were out of his mouth before he had a chance to stop them. There was an awkward silence as the impact of the words settled on all those present and Tony found himself needing to elaborate.

"Until about five years ago I was exactly the little shit you always said I would be, I was spoilt and privileged and I didn't give a fuck about practically anyone. Then this happened..." He pointed to the Arc reactor embedded in his chest. "...And I couldn't be that man anymore."

The elder Stark stared at the blue circle of light emanating in Tony's chest with wonder.

"Is that... An Arc reactor?"

Tony nodded feeling uncomfortable under the scrutiny.

"How? Why?"

"The how is easy, I made it...The why is a little more complicated and has a lot to do with our mutual friend Mr. Stane..."

The confusion was evident on Howard's face so Tony continued.

"I was doing a weapons presentation in Afghanistan and while there I was kidnapped by a terrorist group using Stark weapons, weapons _I had designed_ against the people I intended to protect, all it took for me to see the truth was a shrapnel wound to the chest. This powers an electromagnet to keep it from killing me."

The billionaire began pacing the room unsure of how to word the part of the story.

"I managed to escape; built something pretty cool along the way and when I got back I found someone in the company was double dealing; eventually found out it was Obidiah when he tried to kill me again by pulling this out of my chest, after that I had no choice I had to take him down."

Both Bruce and Howard watched the man pacing with nervous energy unsure of what to say, Bruce because he knew how difficult this was for his friend and Howard because he couldn't apologise for a dead man's mistakes. The physicist took a step forward and placed a hand on Tony's shoulder stopping the man's pacing.

"That's enough Tony you don't have to say any more."

The billionaire looked grateful for the interruption and offered a shakey smile. It was never easy to bring up the past especially when it involved the death of someone you had once trusted and respected. Tony was suddenly grateful that Bruce had come along, he knew where to prod him into talking and when to get him to stop blabbing and if anyone knew about the right time for discretion it was Bruce. Finally after a few moments Tony seemed to gather himself and turned back to Howard, content that the billionaire was back in the right place Bruce stood back and let him continue.

"But I'm getting away from the point here, the point is those fuckers are coming for you and we're not going to let them take you."

The elder Stark frowned.

"You keep saying we, who are you talking about?" He asked.

This time when Tony smiled it was much more genuine.

"Well remember those super-heroes I mentioned, not even a joke and the council have just succeeded in pissing us all off by being a bunch of dickwads."

Howard didn't looked convinced by Tony's adamant proclamation and the billionaire just smirked.

"Don't look so worried old man, the Avengers have your back."

"The Avengers?" There was a hint of humour in the rough voice and Tony was suddenly reminded of the last person who asked him that question and how well that particular encounter had ended. Hopefully this time he wouldn't end up falling out of a twenty story window.

"Yeah, that's kind of what we call ourselves, Earths mightiest heroes and all that jazz."

It appeared that karma was a cruel, ironic bitch.

Almost as soon as the words left the billionaire's mouth the whole building shook violently sending Tony and Bruce flying to the floor and a loud boom could be heard from the bowels of the tower. The lights flickered on and off as the Arc reactor fought to manage the power disruption and Tony cursed under his breath.

"JARVIS! Status report!"

"The tower is under attack Sir, a rocket propelled incendiary device was fired directly into your workshop and I believe you were their intended target. Also there are several heavily armed squads working their way through the internal stairwells and toward the Avengers communal areas." The AI rattled off as he continued to assess the devastation.

_Well fuck._

From across the room he heard the physicist suck in a breath between clenched teeth and for the briefest moment Tony thought he was on the verge of a transformation. Although the Hulk would be useful in a fight, now wasn't the time to make an appearance and then there was how the big guy would react to Howard's presence.

Yeah he could see that going over just _fabulously_.

"Banner you okay over there?"

When Bruce looked up a second later the billionaire didn't see a hint of green as he retorted.

"Yeah... Just peachy."

Tony stood quickly and extended his hand to the physicist; which Bruce quickly grasped and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet.

"I thought they said we had until noon?"

The physicist gave a derisive snort of laughter.

"Since when have the Council ever been honest about anything? The time limit was a ruse to make us lower our guard and we fell for it."

They gave each other a quick knowing glance.

"You know what? These assholes are really starting to piss me off." Tony growled.

"Couldn't agree more, I think perhaps it's time you suited up. I've got things covered here."

Tony nodded in agreement and immediately headed toward the door a snarl on his face.

"J where is my nearest suit?"

"The Mark V is in laboratory three, might I suggest you make haste Sir one of the units is close to accessing this floor."

The billionaire growled under his breath, like fuck those Fuckers were getting anywhere near his R and D floors; he would rather chew his own leg off. He made it to the laboratory in record time and grabbed hold of the suitcase that contained the mobile version of the Iron Man suit, pressing the button to begin the activation sequence.

He smiled grimly as the mechanised suit sprang to life and wrapped itself around his torso and as the face plate lowered the door to the laboratory was blasted inwards and the assault team filtered in. Tony raised his gauntlet the whir of the charging repulsor catching the attention of the would be assailants.

"Hello ladies..." Tony uttered, his voice oddly ominous through the suits synthesiser. "It's show-time."

The sound of the repulsor firing was the last thing the assault team heard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eeeeek! I have to write a fight scene. WTF was I thinking!? *Coughs frantically* Boris... Why do you do this to me? *Dies*
> 
> Okay drama queen moment over.
> 
> Comments are loved and shall be rewarded with virtual hugs (and possibly faster updates)


	16. Chapter Sixteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the fight gets in full swing, Tony releases some frustration and Howard and Hulk have face to face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Hides behind fugly couch* EEEEeeeek fight scene!!! Please forgive my lame writing skills! Enjoy the chapters peeps! And let me see the love *Basks* XP

Chapter Sixteen

No one had been expecting the first explosion, in all honesty they hadn't been expecting the Council to use such an aggressive show of force but in hindsight they probably should have. They were trying to make an example of them; prove to the world, to the Avengers themselves that they weren't infallible and that they held all the power.

It was a cowardly and pretty pathetic attempt in Natasha's honest opinion.

Across the room she could see similar expressions on both Steve and Clint's faces, they were no strangers to intimidation tactics and to them that was all this was, an intimidation tactic. One that wasn't going to work.

"JARVIS where was that explosion centred?" Natasha asked, getting to her feet and brushing down her clothing.

"The explosion was centred around Sir's workshop." The three Avengers sucked in a breath "It was vacated at the time with the exception of Dum-E, who is currently working on damage control."

Clint, Natasha and Steve let out the breaths they'd been holding. For the briefest of moments they had forgotten that Tony wasn't in the workshop like usual and the relief was simultaneous; quickly replaced with searing anger. The first attack usually spoke volumes about an assailants priorities, the fact they'd targeted the billionaire first meant they saw him as the greatest threat to their operation or at least the most troublesome element. It was unsurprising when they thought about it; Tony was unpredictable a complete wild-card and when he'd set his mind to something damn near unstoppable.

But they'd missed and now they were not only going to have to deal with a determined Tony but a pissed off one as well.

"A squad of seven unmarked men are currently making their way to your location carrying tactical weapons." JARVIS said, pulling the three of them from their thoughts.

Hawkeye frowned his hand twitching slightly with the need to hold something; his bow was still in his room and they had only just finished their debriefing when the explosion had hit the tower. Beside him Natasha and Steve were looking just as put out, their own equipment locked away in the safety of their own quarters. Well let it not be said that they couldn't improvise.

Steve immediately ran to the kitchenette section of the communal area while the two assassins leapt toward the bar. Within minutes they had created a make shift arsenal of weapons ranging from simple kitchen knives to a nasty array of Molotov cocktails made from Tony's extensive (and expensive, Widow had already spied a $500 bottle of vodka and bemoaned it's fate) alcohol stash. They had also procured a set of tea towels to act as face masks and found a few pairs of safety goggles hidden in the dishwasher (they weren't going to ask about that). Ready to stave off the initial attack Natasha and Steve took cover behind the large couch, while Clint retreated to the rafters and waited for the assault.

Slowly the door to the communal area creaked open and the sound of heavy boots trying to take light steps filled the air. Natasha counted in her head, waited until all seven sets were in the room and then nodded to the boys.

The next few minutes were absolute chaos.

From his position Clint launched a bag of flour into the mass of enemies with enough force that it exploded. The white powder erupted into the air startling the group and obscuring their vision just long enough for Natasha to stand; a lighted Molotov in hand and lob it into the chaos before ducking down and covering her ears, motioning for Steve to do the same.

The lighted bottle soared through the air in a graceful arc right into the heart of the flour cloud and as the naked flame contacted with the cloud the room went deathly silent before the whole thing exploded.

It wasn't a large explosion, at least not by the Avengers standards but it was big enough to shatter the windows and immobilize their opponents. Steve cautiously emerged from their cover hole gesturing for Natasha to hold back while he scoped out the area. He had to admit he was impressed, who knew a bag of flour could do so much damage? But it wasn't over yet, from within the dust cloud and debris Steve could pick out the sounds of people coming around and regrouping.

"Let's go!" He ordered and both Widow and Hawkeye obeyed.

The ensuing fight was quick but no less brutal for its speed, all three of them had taken the attack on their home as a personal insult and were making sure the intruders _knew_ that. Steve felt a grim sense of satisfaction as he felt one man's jaw break as he knocked him clean out and he knew better than to reprimand Natasha when she got a little 'slice-happy' with a fish knife. It wasn't enough to do any _real_ damage but it was certainly more than enough to get the point across and by the end thanks to their combined efforts the group was a whimpering, snivelling unconscious mess on the floor.

Feeling somewhat vindicated Natasha bent down and plucked a comms device from one of the men, relishing the shudder and whimper as he unconsciously tried to draw away from a perceived threat.

_Serves the bastards right._ The assassin thought viciously, popping the bud into her ear.

_**All squads, repeat all squads Iron-Man is in the vicinity; use of anti-tech weapons is a go, repeat use of anti-tech weapons is a go.** _

Well it seemed like Tony was having some fun but the message was far from over and it was the next part that had Natasha slightly worried.

_**Three birds on intercept route be advised and ready for immediate evac on signal.** _

Fuck, they were bringing in reinforcements.

"Cap, I think we've got a problem. They're bringing in reinforcements."

The blonde's eyebrows knitted together as he frowned and Clint huffed in annoyance folding his arms across his chest.

"Well that sucks."

"No shit, way to state the obvious Cap." Hawkeye retorted, rolling his eyes.

Natasha glared at Clint, wishing that for just once in his life he could take something with the seriousness it deserved. As usual the archer ignored it entirely and started picking through the unconscious men's things, pocketing a few flash and chaff grenades he found stashed about their persons.

"JARVIS can you put me through to Tony?" Steve asked, a disapproving look on his face as he watched Clint's pilfering.

"Of course Captain Rogers."

It took a few minutes but soon a familiar voice filtered through the speakers.

"This is the real-life replica of Tony Stark available for weddings, bar mitzvahs and kicking the ass of secret organisations. What can I do you for?" The billionaire's voice was easy going but there was a steely edge to it.

In the background Hawkeye sniggered and Widow none to subtly elbowed him in the ribs.

"Stark what's your status?" The soldier asked, all business.

"Well hello to you too Capsicle."

" _Stark..."_

There was a sigh from the other end of the comms.

"Just took out a goon squad on the medi-lab floor, I don't know how they got in, never mind that they managed to cloak themselves from JARVIS until they were practically on top of us."

There was definite anger in the billionaire's voice and the rest of the team couldn't blame him. His tech was the one thing the Tony prided himself upon above all else and he hated it when people messed with it.

"And Howard?"

"He's with Bruce, they're laying low in the lab."

Steve nodded along even though he knew Tony couldn't see him and motioned to Clint and Natasha to get moving as JARVIS gave the all clear. They bolted from the room and made their way to their quarters and quickly geared up, while Steve continued the debrief with the billionaire.

"Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we've got three bogeys incoming, think you can do something about it?"

There was a short bark of laughter "No probs Cap, I'm all over it like a virus."

Steve didn't quite understand the term but he was sure that it meant that Tony was dealing with the incoming intruders. He breathed a sigh of relief quite content to let the billionaire get on with his mission.

"Be careful Tony." He murmured down the comms.

"Always am Cap, Now if you'll excuse me I have some hostile's to deal with."

* * *

Bruce paced the lab nervously wringing his hands together as he walked the length and breadth of the small room. Sat in the uncomfortable visitors chair was Howard looking distinctly ill at ease and his gaze glassy. There was a whine from down the corridor, one that was reassuringly familiar to the physicist but made the elder Stark jump slightly.

"What the hell is that?" Howard asked, somewhat alarmed.

Bruce felt a smile breakout across his features.

"That's Tony or if we're being specific that's Tony in his Iron-Man armour."

The windows of the lab shuddered as the red and gold blur streaked past and exploded out of the window at the far end of the corridor. Bruce couldn't help but feel a moment of smug satisfaction as Howard's jaw dropped and his eyes gleamed with wonder and approval, he only wished that Tony had been here to see it.

"I-Is... w-was that what I think it is?" There was no hiding the awe in his voice.

"If you think it was a fully mechanised suit of armour with flight and battle capabilities then yes it was." The physicist didn't even attempt to not sound smug on his friends behalf.

"Does everyone have those now?"

"No, just Tony. It's what he created after he was kidnapped to take back the weapons that had been sold on the side." Bruce replied in a matter of fact manner, running a hand through his hair.

Howard's eyes practically gleamed at that particular information and the physicist could practically see the man's hands itching to get a hold of the suit and tinker with it. Bruce just shook his head in amused exasperation, it appeared the obsessive compulsive need to see how things worked was a heredity trait in Stark men and not just something that was Tony specific. His amusements was short lived as JARVIS came over the loud speaker.

"Doctor Banner may I suggest you change locations? There is another squad closing in on your location."

_Shit._

Bruce didn't even hesitate, he'd learned long ago hesitation usually led to an attempt at capture, which led to death and destruction usually at the hands of the Hulk. He grabbed hold of Howard's arm and dragged him upwards heading toward the private stairwell that lead to the 'Green Room'. The man followed without complaint something that pleased the physicist immensely; it appeared the old man was starting to trust him and he had to wonder just how long that would last if the situation turned really bad.

After a few minutes of light jogging down stairs they reached the imposing door of Hulk's playroom both Bruce and Howard looking decidedly cagey. Hesitantly the physicist placed his hand against the cool metal of the door and waited for a few seconds while the system ascertained his identity, knowing that he was the only one able to open to the door using this method. It was one of the stipulations he'd made when moving in, that only he could easily access this room. It was a stipulation he'd been very glad he'd made, Tony's curiosity about the other guy was unfathomable and those extra few minutes he had to spend breaking in meant he actually thought a little about what he was about to do.

The door slid open without hassle the computer murmuring something about biometric identification accepted and Bruce quickly dragged the older man inside, putting the room into immediate lock down.

Howard gaped at the sheer size of the room, his mouth slack and his eyes wide.

"What is this place?"

Bruce felt a sardonic grin cross his features.

"A playroom."

The elder Stark whistled low under his breath, eyes drinking in the technical smorgasbord that had been laid out before him.

"That must be some kid you've got?"

The sardonic smile remained affixed to the physicist's face and his voice was laced with dry humour as he responded.

"You have no idea; I just pray you don't have to meet him."

The silence stretched out between the two men as they waited, Howard being surprisingly tactful and knowing to keep his mouth shut. Bruce didn't speak for fear he'd throw up, his stomach was churning unpleasantly and the faint stirrings of the Other Guy were rumbling in the back of his mind. He had a lid on the Hulk for the time being but he could feel his inner behemoth shift as he realised that the 'Puny Old Man!' was stuck in there with them.

"Doctor Banner, the squad has made their way to the door and are currently attempting to hack the electronic lock; by my estimates they will be through in less than five point four minutes."

_Shit. Fuck. Gaping Assholes._

Five minutes was... Not a long time.

It looked like he wasn't going to have a choice in the matter, he'd swore to Tony; his fellow Avenger, his _best_ _friend_ that he would keep Howard safe and he would do that using every means at his disposal. Slowly he began to unbutton his shirt eyes focused solely on the adamantium door some fifty feet in front of him.

"What the fucking hell are you doing?" Howard sounded mortified.

Bruce looked over his shoulder letting a little of the green bleed into his iris's, even in the dim light he could see the other man flinch and it gave him a strange sense of satisfaction.

"Getting ready to show you my party trick and the reason you shouldn't make me angry. Piece of advice; stay out of sight." His voice was dead-pan and slightly gravelly.

The elder Stark looked confused and like he was about to argue with the physicist but Bruce cut him off.

"Listen just stay out of the way!"

He didn't wait any longer, just let the transformation take over and gave himself over to the beast inside. From just behind Bruce Howard watched simultaneously transfixed and mortified as the expanse of green erupt from the much smaller man. Under most circumstances the older man would have thought he had to be hallucinating, but considering all that had happened since he had woke up maybe not. But still it wasn't every day you saw a man triple in size and turn green.

The giant roared at the door, so loud that it made the entire room vibrate and caused Howard to clutch at his ears to dampen the noise. He stared unable to take his eyes off the beast, watched as the acid green gaze flicked to the doors that were slowly opening and quaked as he roared again before charging.

The chaos was instantaneous the squad of men scattered in pure fear clearly not expecting to deal with the rampaging green monster that had once been a man.

"This is squad seven we have been engaged by the Hulk, requesting immediate back up and Hulkbuster uni..."

There was a sickening thud and crunch as the man went flying across the room and connected with the unyielding metal wall. The remaining men finally found some modicum of courage and opened fire the bullets ricocheting off the green skin as if they were raindrops. The Hulk roared again and stretched out his arms before bringing his palms together in a monstrous thunder-clap that sent an almost visible shockwave around the room; sending the rest of the soldiers soaring through the air and crashing into the Green Room's various surfaces.

The behemoth let out a rough snort and grinned mercilessly at the fallen men.

"Stupid men try break Hulk's home, Hulk break them."

From his hiding place Howard couldn't contain the sigh of hysterical relief and instantly the giant turned ready to fight the next assailant. When his acid green eyes fell upon the old man Hulk growled and stalked forward a look of pure thunderous rage on his face.

"OLD MAN!"

The elder Stark paled dramatically, fear erupting within him as he became the Hulk's primary focus. He knew there was nowhere to hide, the beast had him firmly in his sights.

"Banner..." That was what the computer had called him wasn't it?

"NOT BANNER! HULK!"

"Uh... Hulk then..."

"STUPID OLD MAN HURT BANNER! HURT TONY! HULK SHOULD SMASH STUPID OLD MAN!"

Howard honestly saw his life flash before his eyes, of all the ways to go bring crushed and beaten to a bloody pulp by a giant green man had not even factored into the equation.

"But Tony say no. Say smash old man bad."

The Hulk stopped in front of Howard and stared down at him, his acid coloured eyes deep and filled with unbridled emotion.

"Hulk no agree but understand. So Hulk only smash little."

An ominous silence filled the room. The older man watched as a giant green hand raised upwards and he closed his eyes waiting for the blow to fall, there was a tense moment where nothing happened and then he felt a pressure on his forehead and he toppled over backwards. Howard's eyes flew open in shock as he stared up at the Hulk who was... smiling? Albeit somewhat rough and viciously but it was still a smile.

"Tony good, Old Man need see it."

Howard swallowed around the lump in his throat unable to form words and for a moment it seemed like everything was fine then the Hulk roared, face scrunched in pain and giant hands clawing at his back. The giant staggered backwards and fell to his knees and as Howard looked closer he could see vibrations running through the massive green muscles.

_A sonic attack?_

Hulk moaned pitifully and began to shrink; the vibrant green skin slowly fading back to pink, bones and muscles twisting and reforming in a way that made the elder Stark sick to his stomach. Within minutes the behemoth had reverted back into the man and Bruce lay unconscious on the floor his body still twitching and under attack from the sonic device attached to his back.

"Mr. Stark."

Howard looked up from writhing mass on the floor to the man standing behind him, a remote clasped in his hand. He was dressed in tactical gear but didn't appear to be armed with anything other than the remote and the firearm attached to his side. And if his eyes weren't deceiving him the pips on his uniform indicated he was a General.

"General."

The man flashed a vicious smile.

"I'm going to have to ask you to come with me, I'm afraid."

Howard looked down his nose at the man clearly unhappy with his choice of options.

"And if I say no?" The question was blunt and defiant.

The General's smile widened and his eyes took on a manic gleam as if almost daring the man to disobey his command.

"If you say no then this..." Here his face twisted into a sneer and he actually turned and spat on the unconscious Bruce "... _Man_ will end up as a vegetable and we'll just take you by force."

As if to prove his point a secondary squad filtered in through the door, rifles trained on them and the General raised the remote and pushed the button causing the prone man on the floor to convulse and let out a whimper of sheer agony. Howard grimaced eyes narrowed in anger, he didn't _like_ Bruce but he that did not mean he wished him any harm; especially now he realised that the man meant _him_ no real harm and was kind of on his side.

He'd learnt long ago not to bite the hand that feeds you.

Or in this case the guy trying to save your ass.

Resigned he raised his hands in surrender hoping that this man was a man of his word, even if he did suspect otherwise.

He didn't notice the man circle around behind him or the dart until it was too late. Within seconds Howard had slumped to the floor as he felt the darkness seep in.

~End Chapter Sixteen.~

* * *


	17. Chapter Seventeen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the battle intensifies further, Tony gets a phone call and a familiar friend shows up finally

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for all of the wonderful comments! You rock all of my worlds ^_^

Warnings: Language, explosions, violence and ye olde English (guess who shows up in this chapter XD)

Daddy Dearest.

Chapter Seventeen.

The sound of shattering glass echoed through the speakers of the suit as Tony crashed through the window and soared out across the New York skyline, admiring the early morning sunshine as Steve's words repeated themselves inside his brain. He was still running on anger at the sheer audacity of those fuckers attacking him in his own damn home and that fuelled the adrenaline pumping through his veins.

"J, I want an exact location and ETA on those bogeys Capsicle mentioned."

"Of course Sir, calibrating coordinates now."

Tony watched while JARVIS worked his magic and within seconds the AI had pinpointed the trajectory of all three of the inbound copters. With a ruthless grin the billionaire made his way to intercept manoeuvring around the heavily built up area with ease. He banked around one of the many skyscrapers catching sight of his first target, the Apache was a garish blight but it more than made up for its looks with sheer firepower and deadly accuracy.

But first things first he had to get their attention.

"JARVIS. Flares."

The suit responded immediately sending a barrage of brightly coloured lights at the helicopter and it responded in kind with a hail of gunfire that ripped through the nearby buildings as if they were paper. Tony prayed the buildings were empty; admittedly the odds were certainly favourable considering the early hour but in New York you could never be too sure when someone would decide to hit the office early.

Knowing that he had gotten the Apache's attention the billionaire turned and sped off toward a less built up area with the copter in hot pursuit. He knew he had to try and limit the damage in taking it down (something his pursuers apparently had little concern for.) but to do that he'd have to move out of the range of the tower and by proxy the rest of the team.

Damned moral and ethical obligations.

Tony swooped and flew through a winding set of streets heading toward the bay; the chopper hot on his tail. Finally satisfied that he cleared enough distance Tony turned to face his foe a grim smile on his face behind the visor. The Apache hovered in mid air for a second before ducking to one side and unleashing some of its payload.

"Chaff!"

A confetti of silver erupted from the Iron Man suit obscuring the missiles onboard targeting and sent it plummeting harmlessly into the bay where it exploded with an impressive boom sending a small tidal wave rocking through the area soaking everything within range. Feeling smug the billionaire turned to face the helicopter noting with some disapproval that it had gone into hiding once again, he knew that if the pilot was experienced than he wouldn't make a move until the last possible moment hiding in the shadows of the warehouses.

But Tony didn't have time for that.

"Where is he J?"

The HUD flashed with a thousand pieces of information as the AI scanned the area and pinpointed the location and having obtained his answer the billionaire flew off; destructive intent on his mind. The helicopter was hovering behind a large shipping warehouse clearly waiting for the opportunity to strike but it hadn't factored in the sheer speed of the armour and before it had chance to respond Tony was already in position and ready to attack. He let loose a small blast from the repulsors taking out the rear rotor sending the Apache into a spin and crashing into the floor. Luckily it had only been hovering a few feet from the ground so the crash was fairly unspectacular and happy that they were now indisposed the billionaire headed back toward the tower.

Or at least that was his intention.

As he flew back into the city outskirts warning lights began flashing wildly and before he knew what had happened JARVIS had initiated evasive maneuvers and Tony felt his world tilt.

"What the fuck was that JARVIS?"

"It appears that the other helicopters have come to aid their comrade Sir." The AI replied wryly, while executing another nausea inducing barrel roll.

"Well isn't that just _dandy_." Tony replied through gritted teeth.

Another hailstorm of bullets ripped through the air sending the suits sensors into overdrive and the billionaire into a spin as he dodged the barrage of munitions. The copters moved with him; a much more nimble model than the tank like Apache and try as Tony might he couldn't quite manage to shake them or lure them to a less built up spot where he could safely take then out.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" He snarled, dodging yet another missile.

This was getting them nowhere and the longer it continued the less chance they had of successfully fending off the attack.

It was time to take drastic measures, he could deal with the consequences later.

"J, I want a missile lock on those assholes and I want it last Tuesday."

If JARVIS could be exasperated the billionaire was pretty sure that was what the AI would be feeling right now but fortunately for Tony he was incapable of such an emotion and therefore completed the assigned task; admittedly with a much darker tone than usual. He was about to let rip on the first of the helicopters when JARVIS interrupted him again.

"Sir, Miss Potts is on the line."

_Of all the times Pep._

"Tell her I'm a little busy J." Tony murmured, firing off the first of the missiles and blowing the helicopter to kingdom come.

There is a moment's silence as the helicopter falls to the world below and Tony winces as it crashes into the top of a multi-story car park, luckily the upper level is deserted so there is minimal damage. But not to the helicopter however the billionaire isn't really that fussed about them.

"Sir, I'm afraid she's insisting."

Tony lets out a tired sigh, really it is _too damn early_ to be dealing with all this at once but he knows if he delays the inevitable it will just make Pepper madder. He quickly runs a scan of the area and zips off after the second helicopter which is retreating back toward the tower; an action that fills him with a sense of dread.

"Put her through J."

"Tony! What the _hell_ do you think you're playing at giving the entire New York branch the day off?" Her voice was shrill bordering on hysterical.

"Er... Pep's this isn't the greatest time to be discussing this."

He was trying to be tactful, he really was but there was so much going on and the helicopter was getting away.

"It's never a good time for you Tony..." The woman snapped in reply, worry evident in her voice. "We haven't spoken in nearly a fortnight and then you pull a stunt like this, I'm tired of being kept out of the loop when all I want to do is help."

Guilt hit the billionaire square in the gut but he pushed it to the side as he soared past the Empire State Building in pursuit. He knew what Pepper was saying was true but he hadn't wanted to involve her in this, he hadn't wanted her to see just how broken he really was. It was the same reason he hadn't really wanted to involve any one else, his demons were too close to the surface with this and he didn't want to be seen as weak.

"I'm sorry Pepper... But this really isn't the best time for this, I promise I'll explain later."

There was a sigh from down the line and when Pepper spoke again her voice was tinged with sadness.

"It's always later with you Tony, what happens if later never comes? Please just tell me what is going on."

Again the guilt twisted in the billionaire's gut and coupled with the anxiety induced adrenaline it made his head spin momentarily. He took a deep breath and began to speak as the targeting system locked on to the last helicopter.

"The tower is under attack" He heard Pepper gasp from the other end of the phone. "We had an early warning so we were able to send a message to the SI employees not to come in. I'm sorry there wasn't time to okay it with you, I had to act."

There was obvious remorse in his voice and the red head instantly picked it up but that didn't stop the slew of questions falling from her mouth, questions Tony fully intended to answer. Finally the suit had a full lock on the last chopper and he was just about to launch when the impossible happened.

The suit shut down.

There were nanoseconds that felt like years as the realisation sunk in and then as if the metaphorical strings holding the suit in place were severed it plummeted downwards. Inside Tony was frozen in horror as his mind worked furiously to figure _what the fuck had just happened_ and more importantly _how the fuck to reverse it before he became an Iron Man pancake on the floor._ His synapses fired and worked through the various hypotheses while he pushed against the suit with all his strength to try and move the now immobile limbs. The billionaire knew that nothing short of an Electro-magnetic pulse could render the suit completely useless and to achieve that usually involved some kind of nuclear explosion and if that were the case he'd already be dead. Well much deader than he would be hitting the ground at terminal velocity.

So that meant they'd perfected a portable EMP device, the bastards.

It also meant that there had to have been a fourth aircraft somewhere in the vicinity with stealth capabilities Tony would have died to have seen, irony totally intended. it wasn't every day he found something that could fool his sensors.

The billionaire had to laugh at that, here he was about to kick the bucket and the last thing he was thinking of was the tech that had brought him down.

Tony _fucking_ Stark to a _fucking_ tee.

Because he knew there would be no Hulk to save him this time, Bruce was busy completing his own task and the rest of the Avengers were probably kicking all sorts of WSC ass back at the tower. Despite the fact he knew he was about to die he felt strangely _tranquil_ about the whole thing, odd considering the PTSD he suffered after his last free fall and subsequent brush with death.

it looked like he'd finally pushed his luck too far.

Resigned to his fate Tony closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable body crushing impact, enjoying the feeling of the wind rushing around the suit for the last time.

There was a hushed silence as he fell as if the whole world was holding it's breath and then everything just stopped dead and the billionaire had to wonder if this was just some cruel joke his mind was playing on him.

"I do believe that this is a most unfortunate pastime of yours man of iron, one I hope you intend to break."

Tony's eyes shot open at the sound of the slightly gruff but _oh so welcome_ voice and honestly if he could move he would fucking hug the big blond lummox until his eyes popped out. Seconds later he feels cool air brush against his face as Thor pulls away the face plate, exposing him to the elements. The sudden light is blinding and he squints as his eyes adjust to the brightness and focus on his saviour.

"Thor, has anyone ever told you that you have the best timing ever?" The billionaire's voice is a little shaky and filled to the brim with gratitude.

The demi-god looks momentarily confused but then his face broke out into a broad grin.

"Nay friend, quite often my tardiness is a source of much amusement on Asgard. However I am pleased that for once that my entrance into battle was timely."

Tony couldn't have agreed with the Asgardian more especially since he wasn't currently a smear on the New York sidewalk but then his mind skids to a halt as the rest of Thor's statement filters through his brain.

_Battle..._

"Shit! Thor we need to get to the tower!"

The Asgardian didn't even hesitate and began swinging Mjolinir letting the hammer fly loose toward the tower when it reached top speed and eliciting a small 'eep' from the billionaire as he clung onto Thor for dear life exceptionally aware of what one small slip would do. They reached the tower in record time; not fast enough to stop the helicopter from unleashing a payload into the upper floors before retreating but quickly enough to witness the resulting explosion. Hell half of New York had to have seen it and Tony felt his stomach try to escape through his mouth as he watched portions of the ceiling and floor collapsed on themselves.

Thor set them down on a nearby rooftop and fumbled around trying to free the billionaire from the armour under Tony's strict instruction. Finally the armour released it's grasp and Tony practically fell out, nausea overwhelming him as he slumped to his knees and vomited on the gravel covered floor. He couldn't bare to look at the tower, didn't dare think what that explosion had possibly done and he found it impossible to raise his gaze to meet the demi-god's when Thor softly called out his name.

"Friend Tony, where are our fellow shield brothers?"

The question burned the billionaire to the core and it made Tony feel weak and, what was that word Thor had used, puny? He felt puny, puny and helpless and in way over his head.

"Tower... They were in the tower..." His voice was barely a whisper.

Once again the Asgardian didn't hesitate, he had spent his life in battles and knew the importance that seconds could make in a life or death situation and so before Tony could even ask what he was doing he had swung himself into the chaos that was Stark Tower leaving the billionaire sat alone on dusty rooftop watching the smoking ruins of what an hour earlier had been his home.

* * *

"I think that's the last of them" Natasha muttered, delivering a swift, sharp blow to one of the minions jaw knocking him out cold.

Across the room Steve gave a sharp nod and adjusted his shield while Clint retrieved a few arrows that had imbedded themselves into the nearby wall. Both men had a scowl on their face as they checked their equipment and the Widow tied up their captives with the zip-cuffs she'd retrieved from her room Finally satisfied that the area was secure the remaining Avengers moved out.

"JARVIS where is Doctor Banner?" Steve asked as the moved down the destroyed corridor, eyes alert and body ready to act.

"Doctor Banner is in the Green Room Captain Rogers."

The three teammate's stopped for a second at that information and gave one another a wary look before doubling the pace, practically sprinting toward the armoured room. When the arrived the room was silent, the customized security door was wide open and dust from various debris was still floating in the air. it was obvious there had been some kind of fight but at the moment it was impossible to tell who had been the victor. They entered cautiously, watching out for any more reinforcements that could be hiding in the shadows of the room and made their way to the centre of the dust storm. Steve felt his breath catch in his throat as he spotted the semi-naked Bruce laying face down in the floor and he quickly ran to the physicist's side knowing that his current state meant they had failed their mission.

"Bruce!"

The man didn't stir but as the soldier placed a hand on his shoulder he noticed the trembling of the man's body and the paleness of his skin even though he was burning under his touch.

"Bruce?" Steve tried again, shaking him gently.

There was still no response from the Doctor, if anything the shaking of his muscles intensified almost as if he was having some kind of seizure. It was as he turned his head that he spotted the small device attached to Bruce's back and he beckoned the two former S.H.I.E.L.D agents over. Upon seeing the device Clint swore colourfully and Natasha's mouth drew into an angry line.

"Ublyudki."*

"You've seen this before?" The blonde asked clearly concerned.

Widow just nodded while Clint just snarled.

"Yeah we have, it was a weapon prototype that S.H.I.E.L.D manufactured to _subdue_ the Hulk but as far as we knew it had been abandoned and destroyed when Banner joined the team."

Blue eyes went wide as the severity of what Hawkeye was saying hit home and Steve felt a wave of anger roll through his stomach on Bruce's behalf. It wasn't fair that people so easily dismissed the physicist and only saw Hulk as a monster, as something that had to be _s_ _ubdued_ or worse _eradicated_. He knew that he wasn't entirely innocent of that himself but Steve was determined that it was a mistake he would not repeat.

Natasha seemed to sense his thoughts and knelt down on Bruce's other side a grim but determined look on her face.

"Banner, I don't know if you can hear me but I'm going to remove the device. In order to do so I am going to have to run an electric current through it to overload it but it means it's going to run through you as well so if you could stop the Hulk from smashing me I'd be much obliged."

She didn't stop for breath as she plunged her sting into the small black device and shot the current through it. On the floor Bruce writhed as the electricity passed through him, mouth open in a silent scream while Steve held him still enough for Natasha to do her work. After a few agonising moments the device disengaged and fell to the floor hissing and smoking slightly and finally free of the effects the physicist let out a small whimper and tentatively rolled onto his back.

The red head offered a small smile as the green tinted eyes slid into focus.

"Sorry about that I had to get that thing off you." She genuinely sounded apologetic.

"S'o..k, W...hat?"

Clint moved into Bruce's line of vision looking like he wanted to jam one of his arrows through someone's eye socket.

"A sonic disruptor." He growled "Specifically tailored for the Hulk's physiology."

The physicist closed his eyes and sighed as it all started to make sense and the fuzzy memories began to awaken in his brain. He remembered the fight and then the Hulk cowering and turning to him for help as the disruptor attacked his nervous system and then there was a single voice dominating his consciousness.

" _Ross._ " Bruce's voice was caught between his own and the Hulk's and it caused both Natasha and Steve to flinch slightly.

"We know Bruce and he won't get away with this." Steve reassured, offering his hand to the physicist.

Slowly Bruce reached out and allowed himself to be pulled up, supported on both side by Clint and Steve. With careful measured steps the group made their way toward the open door and out into the corridor. Their progress was slow, the physicist still trying to regain his bearings and it was at this time JARVIS decided to give them an update.

"Captain Rogers I have lost contact with Sir and one of the helicopters is still on route."

The group looked at one another the worry obvious on everyone's faces.

"Shit." Steve murmured "JARVIS how long do we have?"

The AI ignored the request instead favouring to sound the alarm.

'Warning, multiple missiles on direct collision course. Immediate evacuation advised, estimated time until impact fifteen seconds."

Time seemed to slow as the alarm continued to blare loudly about the oncoming explosion and the team huddled together as they heard the first of several loud booms echo through the tower. Above them the ceiling creaked under the strain of containing the explosion and cracks were visible in the concrete.

"Perhaps we should get out of here?" Clint offered, eying the ceiling with genuine concern.

His suggestion was apparently just a second too late because no sooner had the words left his mouth the ceiling caved in around them plunging the four of them into darkness.

* * *

Thor landed in the rubble strewn remains of the penthouse and immediately began calling for his comrades in the vain hope that they would answer.

"Master Odinson."

The Asgardian jumped at the sound of the disembodied voice before he remembered where he was; he recollected the man of iron vaguely introducing him before he had returned to Asgard with Loki.

"You are friend Tony's JARVIS are you not?"

"Yes Master Odinson. If you are here in search of your fellow Avengers then they are located outside the Green Room five floors down."

Thor liked this voice, it always got straight to the point.

"Thank you friend JARVIS, I shall assist them forthwith."

"Master Odinson..." The AI almost sounded nervous to Thor's ears.

"Yes friend JARVIS?"

JARVIS hesitated for a second before replying.

"I lost contact with Mr. Stark several minutes ago..."

Thor couldn't hide the small smile nor did he want to, for something was theoretically wasn't alive the computer mimicked life incredibly well and the blonde could feel that there was genuine concern in JARVIS's voice. Well as genuine as an artificial intelligence (he thinks that's what the man of iron had called it) could get.

"Fear not friend, the man of iron is safe."

There was a slight flickering of the remaining working lights that Thor took as the computerised equivalent of letting out a breath in relief and he smiled in response.

"Thank you Master Odinson, I shall impede you no further."

And with that Thor ran toward the stairwell using Mjolinir to destroy the chunks of rubble and twisted metal blocking his path downwards, it took time but finally he managed to cut himself a path downwards and kicked open the door to the Green Room floor. The floor itself was in utter disarray; the ceiling had caved in along most of the corridor making it almost intraversable unless of course you had the strength of ten men to move the debris or could fly.

Fortunately for Thor both were options available to him.

He flew along the tops of the rubble calling out to his shield brothers until a particularly large pile of rubble shifted involuntarily. The demi-god instantly landed and began digging until a familiar swathe of green skin became visible and a mumbled roar shook free the rest of the debris as the giant emerged unscathed. The Hulk was crouched on hands and knees and in the small pocket of space between the giant torso and the floor was the remaining Avengers huddled together.

"Thor? Am I glad to see you."

The demi-god smiled in response before turning to the Hulk.

"Friend Hulk you can move now, the danger has passed."

There was a brief tense moment where it seemed as though the giant was going to attack but then he stood freeing the people from underneath before taking a few steps and collapsing; shrinking back down into Bruce. The rest of the team were instantly at his side checking for any injuries but there were none, the Hulk had seen to that, but the man was clearly out for the count having undergone two transformations in a relatively short period of time. The Asgardian nodded and began clearing a path toward the exit with some help from Clint and Steve and soon enough they had made a small traversable path to the door.

Carefully Thor lifted the physicist over his shoulder not wishing to jostle the man awake after such a harrowing experience. Steve had given him a quick briefing about what had been going on in his absence and as the soldier explained about Ross and the attack on the tower he had felt and overwhelming protectiveness toward Bruce, just as his fellows had.

"Should I ever meet this man he will be sure to know Mjolinir's wrath. Friend Banner is a good man and does not deserve to be hunted like game."

The three conscious Avengers grinned darkly wholeheartedly sharing the sentiment as the stated at Bruce, who was snoring lightly and drooling on Thor's shoulder.

"Come my friends, the man of iron awaits us."

~End Chapter Seventeen.~

*This means bastards in Russian.

A/N: Finally done. Jesus that took forever, sorry if it sucks... right time to try and get some sleep and hopefully wake up to a ton of reviews *winkwink*


	18. Chapter Eighteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the Avengers re-group, Bruce is a sleepy grump and a friend decides to make the team's acquaintance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh... Sorry about lateness! I'm currently ill with the flu so it gave me a bit of free time to catch up with my updating.
> 
> Thanks to all you guys and gals still reading and commenting.
> 
> Especially... 'Autumn', who quite frankly made my entire week. (And seriously sweetie you need to e-mail me or something so I can thank you properly)

It was a decidedly subdued group that congregated on the nearby roof top looking beaten, dusty and completely worn out. They didn't speak, the levity in their silence enough to convey the feelings of failure and anger they all felt and the whole team found themselves unable to meet one another's gaze. In amidst all this Thor looked thoroughly confused, the unconscious Bruce still slumped over his shoulder; this was not the team he had left behind when he had returned to Asgard.

"My friends you are not yourselves, what has happened to enable such a change?"

The other Avengers remained silent before Steve elected himself as spokesman and broke the quiet.

"That is a long story Thor and one I don't think is suited to be told on rooftops." There was a definite melancholy to his voice.

The Asgardian nodded his gaze drifting toward the still smoking tower; such delicate matters were to be aired in privacy not somewhere that the whole of Midgard could hear.

"Is there somewhere we might go then friends? I have a great need to hear this tale. Heimdall merely said you needed aid, he did not have the opportunity to advise me further."

All eyes turned to Tony and he let out a small sigh, he hated being the one with options. He knew they couldn't go to S.H.I.E.L.D it was just asking for trouble even if Fury had helped them out so far, a lot of their agents were loyal to the council and they wouldn't hesitate to take another crack at them. That meant they had to go private sector and there was only one place in New York that would give them the privacy that they needed, even if it meant facing a few more of his demons.

"Yeah, I think I have a place." He answered, jaw clenching tightly.

*linebreak*

A short while later the team was congregated outside a somewhat dilapidated building in the centre of the city. It had clearly once been a grand building but time and disuse had clearly taken its toll and it was now a shadow of its former self. Tony approached the door and as if by magic it swung open causing the rest of the Avengers to cock their eyebrows in question, which the billionaire blatantly ignored as he stepped through the door.

The first thing that hit him was the darkness, the suffocating, all consuming darkness that threatened to crush Tony with its intensity. The second thing to hit the billionaire was the dry stench of neglect and he had to force down a gag, not only from the smell but from the rolling nausea this place invoked in him. It was full of memories, good memories, bad memories, ones that Tony had hoped he would never have to face again. He didn't know why he hadn't tore this place down years ago in lieu of something more modern, maybe he had been to _sentimental_ about the place after all it was where he'd spent a large portion of his shitty childhood or maybe he was just scared although it was completely irrational and unexplainable.

_Just like always Stark, you really are a piece of work._

A heavy hand dropped on his shoulder jolting Tony from his musing and he turned to see Thor giving him a worried look.

"My Friend, something vexes you."

The billionaire shrugged off the hand gently so as not to offend the Asgardian and turned to the group opening his arms like any good host would to bid them welcome. It was the least he could do considering he'd dragged them to this hell-hole.

"Welcome to Chez Stark, make yourselves at home... which is more than I ever did."

Tony could hear the brittleness in his voice and he fought back a wince, now was not the time for wallowing in self pity no matter how tempting it was. The rest of the team looked thoroughly unconvinced by his 'happy host' performance and he couldn't really blame them but they seemed to take the initiative and began to explore their new base of operations, with the exception of Thor who remained behind Bruce still slung over his shoulder.

"Friend Stark, is there anywhere where I may lay the good doctor?" The Asgardian's voice boomed through the old house.

The billionaire gave a curt but stiff nod and motioned for Thor to follow him which he did without question almost puppy like in his enthusiasm. They stopped at an ornate set of doors which Tony carefully pushed open; as if afraid a ghost would jump out and poked his head inside sighing when nothing accosted him. The room was dusty from misuse but the vivid colours of the upholstery were still visible and it caused the billionaire's heart to clench in his chest. Cautiously he stepped inside to inspect the room further and was pleased, albeit momentarily that his hunch had been right and that this was the most liveable room out of them all.

"In here should be good Point Break." He called out into the corridor and within seconds the Asgardian had entered; filling the room with his massive presence.

Tony moved to the bed and shook down the dusty pillows and duvet, the silky feel of the material beneath his fingers causing a wealth of memories to well up but ignored them focusing on the task at hand. Within minutes the bed had been rendered into a liveable state; not that he thought Bruce would really care. Tony knew the other man had woken up in some exceptionally bizarre places after a transformation and would just be content that he was safe.

Thor moved toward the bed with a gentility that few saw and laid the unconscious man down, smiling as the physicist gave a sleepy sigh and burrowed deeper into the sheets. On the other side of the bed Tony gave a soft snort of laughter.

"Y'know if he were like thirty years younger that would have actually been kind of cute."

The Asgardian laughed quietly at the comment but his face quickly turned serious and he saw the billionaire sigh.

"My friend..." Thor began.

Tony held up his hand to stop the other man speaking and pulled up the stool at the dresser, sitting down rather heavily and scattering s dust cloud. Taking the hint the Asgardian grabbed one of the ornate easy chairs littered about the room and siddled in next to the billionaire his face full of worry and body language tense.

"I know I'm much happier sitting down while we wait for the big guy to wake up."

Thor could see that his comrade was attempting to deflect the conversation away from his desired topic of inquiry and under normal circumstances he'd be content to let the other man play his little game.

But not now.

Not today.

Not after he'd had to pick his battered and bloodied team-mates, his _friends_ for Odin's sake out of the ruins of a place he considered a second home. He just would not do it.

"Stark." His voice was firm, regal and demanding of respect.

Tony visible flinched and dropped his head into his hands.

"I know, you want the story but it's kind of hard to talk about how royally you've fucked up y'know."

Thor although confused by the statement (he found it hard to believe that the Man of Iron had 'fucked up' to such a destructive extent) he could sympathize with the sentiment. He remembered his first foray into modern Midgard, his own foolish mistakes that had brought him here and the lesson he'd had to learn about pride. Admittedly the situation was somewhat different but Thor knew he had no place to judge the man before him, he was not the first nor last man to make a mistake.

"My friend I just wish to know what grievance has brought you to this point."

The billionaire gave a hollow laugh. "Grievance? Well that's one way of describing this clusterfuck but I guess if you want to know."

Tony quickly launched into the story so far and Thor listened with varying degrees of confusion, horror and pure unadulterated fury etched across his face. The Asgardian's heart ached by the end of the tale, his friend's broken and beaten words revealing a truth, a depravity that he had not previously thought the residents of Migard capable of. He ached to lift up Mjolinir and smite his comrades enemies for the heinous act but right now there was something more important for him to do.

Without hesitation he dragged the surprized Tony into a bone crushing hug.

"I understand your pain my friend. I too have thought someone lost to me who was not and I grieved for them despite the horrors they had inflicted upon me and those I cared about but know that I will do all within my power to reunite you both. I swear on my honor as Odinson, as your Shield-Brother and as an Avenger."

Tony felt his throat constrict slightly at Thor's brutal honesty or it possibly could have been the hug, yeah definitely the hug. But he knew exactly who the Asgardian was talking about; Loki was a rather hard person to forget and it felt good that someone understood the messed up emotions (for the record, ew.) That were running rampant through his mind, that he wasn't wrong for feeling this way and that he wasn't alone it hating someone he was supposed to love and vice versa.

"Alright Blondie, I think this hug just passed into uncomfortable territory; maybe next time go with a bro-fist to show your support 'kay."

The blond chuckled slightly and released the billionaire.

"I shall endeavour to use this 'bro-fist' next time Man of Iron. But fear not my friend you are not my 'type' regardless of my interactions toward you."

Tony literally stood and gaped for a good minute before letting out a snort of laughter at Thor's gentle teasing.

"Bitch please, I'm Tony Stark. I'm everyone's type." The billionaire was in full on sass mode.

The Asgardian let out a quiet laugh of his own relieved to see some of Tony's usual spark return. He was about to retort when a sleepy voice cut into the bantering match.

"You're both gonna be the undertakers 'type' if you don't shut up. Some people are trying to sleep here."

Both Thor and Tony looked up at the bed where a still slightly out of it Bruce having a fight with the hoards of quilts, looking hot and uncomfortable.

"Need some help?" Tony couldn't keep the smirk out of his voice.

Bruce glared from beneath the bed covers and it caused the billionaire's smirk to grow wider and for Thor to hide a small laugh behind his hand.

"Just what did you coat these things in? Super glue?"

Again Tony couldn't hide the snort of laughter, sleepy, grumpy and frustrated Bruce was just too funny and for the first time in what felt like years he felt like his old self again. Feeling merciful he stepped forward and helped untangle the physicist from the dastardly linens and soon Bruce was relaxed and acting more like himself, only half asleep, the exhaustion once again catching up with him.

"Better my friend?" Thor asked, a small smile on his face.

"Mmhmm." Bruce replied, head lolling in a sleepy nod and yawning. "What 'appnd? Is ev'one 'kay? I 'member the ceiling comin' d-d-d-down and then noth'g."

Both the Asgardian and Tony rolled their eyes at the physicist's lack of self concern but decided to address that little issue much later. Right now the man needed rest, it was clear that whatever had happened had clearly taken it's toll and neither Thor or the billionaire envied Bruce's position at all right now. The demi-god stepped forward and laid a broad hand on the man's narrow shoulder, gently pushing him down into the mountain of pillows.

"Our comrades are fit and well Doctor, your warrior self did an admirable job of keeping them safe from the collapse. Now it is time for rest."

Bruce blinked owlishly apparently debating whether to fight against the request and just about every message his body was screaming at him at the moment and Tony and Thor knew he would as well.

"'Ut... uhm... St'ff t'do... got..."

This time it was Tony's hand on Bruce's shoulder and he pierced the physicist with a stern gaze.

"Bruce we're all okay, so for once in your do-gooding life will you actually look after yourself? Because you know I have no objections getting Nat and asking her to knock you out."

Defiance flared in the tired, brown eyes but it was gone as quickly as it appeared and the sullen look on Bruce's face was almost laughable, making him seem much younger.

"Fine." Even his voice was petulant but he closed his eyes regardless.

Thor and Tony shot one another an amused glance and headed toward the door both of them biting the,insides of their cheeks go stop the laughter from spilling out as the sound of snoring reached their ears before they even reached the door. The hilarity of the moment was not lost on either man and they shot each other a wry grin before quietly exiting the room.

The two men walked slowly along the balcony landing, Tony hesitant to rejoin reality and Thor just wanting to be there for his comrade should he ask. The Asgardian was still in the process of absorbing the information that the Man of Iron had given him and it made his chest swell with anger when he remembered the chaos and destruction he had arrived to. They had swore an oath to protect this realm; but who was there to protect the protectors? It appeared the answer to that was no one and it burned Thor to his very soul.

As they reached the top of the stairs the two men had lapsed into a comfortable silence, a silence that was quickly broken as a shrill and slightly hysterical voice ripped through the air.

" _Anthony Edaward Stark._ "

Tony's paled at the sound of that familiar voice, hearing the worry and concern cutting deep. Slowly his gaze turned to the door and there stood Pepper chest heaving and body physically shaking from the exertion. Her blue eyes were flashing with a wildness that Tony had ever seen a few occassions and before the billionaire even knew what he was doing he was running down the stairs.

Right into a slap across the face.

Tony staggered back clutching his cheek and eyes wide.

"You... Don't you ever... I-I thought... I thought"

Pepper's voice was on the verge of breaking and the billionaire felt his heart plummet, he'd completely forgotten that he'd been talking to her when the suit had been disabled. Slowly he stepped forward so not to spook the red head and wrapped his arms around her. Pepper fought slightly, weakly pounding her fists against Tony's chest as she finally broke down sobbing into his t-shirt and he just held her albeit somewhat awkwardly.

"I thought you were dead..." She hiccupped, fingernails digging into the billionaire's skin.

Tony grimaced and tightened his hold; muttering apologies into Pepper's hair, trying to reassure her that he was there, that he was okay. Well as okay as could be expected given the situation. After a few minutes the two lovers parted, Pepper taking a deep breath and regaining her composure while Tony stuffed his hands into his pockets and attempted to look casual. He was aware that his every move was being watched by the rest of the team even if he couldn't see them and he just couldn't be dealing with their sappy faces at that moment.

"How did you know we were here?"

Pepper's lips twitched slightly, although there was an irritated look on her face.

"JARVIS, he sent me a message after whatever happened had happened. He said that this was your most logical place to retreat; I admit I didn't believe him but here we are."

The billionaire gave a shrug not daring to meet her gaze, he felt raw and ripped open and he needed space to lick his wounds and pull himself back together.

"Here we are." He replied.

There was a moment of silence before Thor strode forward and dragged the red head into a bone crushing hug.

"Lady Pepper it is wonderful to see you in good health." He boomed, breaking the tension in the room.

The CEO winced as she heard her bones crack under the force of Thor's hug but graced him with a smile once he had released her.

"It's good to see you too Mr. Odinson."

And like that it was like any normal day back at the tower, Natasha and Clint crawled out from wherever they had been hiding and they banded together to interrogate Pepper while Thor headed into what had been discovered to be the kitchen with the aim of finding where Steve had wandered off to. Tony in the mean time just lingered on the edges taking the rate opportunity to just enjoy the moment because he knew that this tranquility wouldn't last.

Nothing good ever did for him.

~End Chapter Eighteen~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys are all awesome! Sorry about the slightly slow chapter, but sleepy Bruce was fun to write!


	19. Chapter Nineteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the situation worsens and gets more complicated, Tony acts like a grown up and Natasha is observant.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Life can suck my non-exsisent balls. That is all.
> 
> Warnings: Slightly angsty, some language.

Daddy Dearest

Chapter Nineteen.

Several hours later the team and Pepper found themselves huddled in Stark Manor's main hall eating bad take out that Pepper had wrangled one of her minions into getting and trying to remember that today just hadn't happened at least for a little while. They were all quiet, lost in their own thoughts but the silence was far from oppressive it was oddly comfortable although Tony would have rather chewed off his own foot than admit it.

Tony cuddled closer to Pepper blocking out all thoughts that weren't centred around his girlfriend and just revelled in the warmth she seemed to permanently radiate. In response the red head just rolled her eyes in an affectionate manner, earning her a few quiet amused chuckles. Pepper couldn't help but smile at that, that these people after having what could only be described as the bad day to end all bad days could still find the humour in Tony's octopus antics.

Her eyes flitted around the room taking in everyone with that discerning gaze she usually saved for shareholders. Natasha and Clint were sprawled across one of the love seats with the silvery take-out containers balanced rather precariously on their laps while Steve and Thor had taken residence on the other end of the large L-shaped couch happily scoffing their way through the food. Bruce had joined the group just after everything had been delivered and had settled on the floor in the corner of the L, he admittedly hadn't lasted long and after eating his fill had promptly fallen asleep again. It had literally taken all her skills as Tony's handler to stop the billionaire from harassing the poor man in his sleep but there truly wasn't anything a little bit of bribery couldn't solve.

Pepper gave a sigh as she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket and shifted her clingy boyfriend to retrieve it. Tony pouted and grumbled slightly but was honestly too tired to even think about moving but Pepper didn't seem to mind too much.

She pulled out the Stark-Phone and frowned at the rather excessive amount of missed calls admittedly they had all been from Happy but the sheer volume was alarming. He'd finally resorted to texting and it was that single message that had caught her attention.

**Where are you? Are you with the Boss? Have you seen the news? HH**

The red head rolled her eyes assuming that he was talking about the attack on the tower, everyone in New York State had probably heard about that by now. She replied quickly telling him that yes she was with Tony, they were safe and that she had already heard about the tower. Setting down the phone she ran her hand through the billionaire's hair and made herself more comfortable not expecting Happy to reply to the message that was why when the phone buzzed mere seconds later Pepper looked genuinely confused. Warily she picked it up eyes scanning the message.

**That wasn't the news I was talking about. I'm worried about both of you. HH**

Dread settled in Pepper's gut, a cold soul numbing dread that she had only been afflicted with once before; the day of the Chitauri attack and she knew that she needed to see what had Happy so concerned. Without even hesitating she practically threw Tony off her and ran from the room toward the bedroom that they'd prepared while waiting for the food completely ignoring the concerned stares following her back. Once in the room she dove for her bag and the tablet that went everywhere with her, hands shaking slightly as she picked up the sleek piece of tech.

She took a deep breath and calmed her nerves, telling herself over and over that it was just Happy being his usual overprotective self and blowing things out of proportions but it still didn't stop her hesitating from switching the damn thing on. She wanted to preserve her time with Tony and this little bubble of tranquillity just a little while longer.

The tablet lit up beneath her fingers and within seconds was displaying the collective news media of the US; strangely enough they were all displaying the same thing and Pepper's heart clenched in her chest as tears pricked at her eyes.

This was bad, very _very_ bad.

There was a knock at the door and Pepper looked up to find Tony standing in the doorway an unusually serious look on his face, he'd known something had been wrong the second Pepper had fled the room all that was left was to find out how big a mess they were in.

"What's happened?" He asked slowly, carefully as if Pepper was a piece of spun glass that would shatter if he used his usual pace and tone.

It didn't seem to matter, tears leaked from the corners of the blue eyes anyway and the red head half choked a frustrated sob as she held out the tablet to him. Tony blinked at the sleek piece of metal and frowned; what could possibly be so awful after everything that had happened? He tentatively took the tablet ignoring the slight shudder in the back of his mind at being handed something and glanced at the brightly lit screen face instantly dropping.

"Fuck..."

The billionaire felt his grip around the tablet tighten dramatically so much so that he was surprised the device didn't shatter from the force as the pure anger erupted in his chest. They'd been played, expertly played by the WSC and Tony had walked straight into it like a blind fool. He should have known that the fuckers at the council wouldn't let it lie with just taking back Howard; they'd said they were going to make an example of him and if this wasn't a power play then he didn't know what was.

The headline **'Enemy of the Stark: Billionaire wanted on treason charges!'** glared up at him, mocking him and Tony threw the tablet on the bed before sinking down next to Pepper dropping his head into hands.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Pep's I never meant for things to get this bad... I just..."

Pepper wrapped an arm around his waist and laid her head on his shoulder trying to offer what comfort she could as she nuzzled into Tony's neck. The red head couldn't begin to imagine what was flitting through her boyfriend's mind but she could assume that he was hurting and that made his next words all the harder to stomach.

"You should leave."

"No." Pepper answered instantly causing Tony to sigh.

"I can't have you caught up in this Pep... I just can't. This is only the tip of the iceberg and those fuckers are not going to give up or stop until I'm rotting in some prison or dead; they are serious about this. I need you to take care of Stark Industries, not that you aren't already but it's where you can do the most good and I'll know that you're safe... Out of their reach."

Pepper hated Tony in that moment, hated that he'd both logically and emotionally managed to back her into a corner. Normally it was the other way around and it wasn't a feeling that she particularly relished, she knew Tony was right, was trying to be the sensible one in this but it still didn't make it feel less like a rejection.

"Tony..." She started to protest determined to at least put her point across but the stubborn man sat behind her was having none of it.

"No, please don't fight me on this... It's hard enough as it is."

Pepper didn't say anything just buried her face deeper into his neck and tried to block out the pain that was wrapping itself around her heart. She hadn't felt this vulnerable in a while, hadn't seen Tony this vulnerable in a while and it was going to take every inch of her resolve to do as the man requested. With a soft sigh and hiccup she whispered in his ear.

"Okay."

That one word caused Tony to go limp with relief knowing that the wonderful woman curled up against him just _understood_ ; understood that he had to do this and that he had to do it without her. He drew her into a kiss, soft but passionate and expressing every word he was terrified to actually say to Pepper and she returned in kind with the words that she knew that he'd never be able to accept. They stayed intertwined for a few moments longer before the billionaire pulled away slightly flushed but his eyes were filled with a steely determination that the red head recognized instantly, it was no longer Tony Stark sat next to her but Iron-Man.

"I'll head back to the tower and get in contact with the lawyers; try and sort through all this bullshit." She put on her best CEO voice even though it quivered slightly.

Tony offered her a weak smile and nodded stiffly. "Thanks Pep, you're the best."

Pepper rolled her eyes as if to say 'well of course' but there was none of the usual good humour in the gesture. She extracted herself from Tony and stood up, brushing the non-existent dust from her clothing as an excuse to linger seconds longer before she turned to the door and walked toward it. The red head reached the door and hesitated for a second before walking through it muttering something under her breath.

"Be safe Tony, come back to me."

The billionaire felt his heart twist painfully at the implications of those words; he knew that trouble just seemed to follow his and there had been far too many close calls for his or Pepper's liking. But he'd pulled through every single one of those situations, not always unscathed admittedly but pretty much whole. It seemed that for all the trouble that followed him Lady Luck was never far behind giving him that one in a million opportunity to make it home alive but he knew he'd been pushing it recently and even Tony was beginning to wonder when his luck would finally run out.

He was living on borrowed time and with that sobering and disturbing thought circling his mind he went back to join the others.

"Pepper gone?"

Tony looked up to the source of the voice still slightly dazed and lost and in his own thoughts.

"Tony?" A second voice piped up still slightly disjointed in his mind.

A hand landed on his shoulder and Bruce's fuzzy outline swam in front of him drawing his mind away from his thoughts and back into reality. He blinked a few times bringing the other man into focus and immediately shrugged Bruce's hand off offering him a weak smile; in the background he could see the rest of the team with concerned looks on their faces. It took a few moments but Tony finally realised they were all waiting for a response and he snapped fully out of the daze, mentally compartmentalising the conversation with Pepper to analyse later.

"Uh Yeah... Had work stuff... Y'know woman's work is never done and all that."

Nobody looked particularly convinced by his explanation but they let the matter drop for the time being and backed off going back to whatever they had been doing before he'd wandered back in. Not really feeling up for much conversation he crashed back on the couch tablet in hand and began playing one of the mindless games Pepper had installed on it. He allowed himself to get lost in the simple algorithms and bright colours of the games and before long he found himself alone in the room save for one other soul. The couch dipped beside him and for a moment he saw a flash of red out of the corner of his eyes; Natasha, he should have known she'd be the one to approach.

"So Stark are you going to tell me what happened or am I going to have to take that off you." She raised an eyebrow in a silent challenge.

Tony ignored her, admittedly not his greatest idea and continued tapping on the clear screen of the tablet not actually believing that the assassin would actually take the device off him. Natasha seemed to wait a second before moving with a grace and speed that no human should be allowed to have, waving the tablet in front of Tony teasingly. The billionaire pouted slightly and moved to grab the tablet back, completely missing as Natasha danced out of the way a teasing smirk on her face.

"Ah, ah you didn't say the magic word Stark."

Tony glared at Natasha's taunt and once again went to snatch the tech back causing the red head to laugh lightly even though her eyes were serious.

"Really I know you can do better than this..."

The billionaire ground his teeth together and forced to keep his face impassive, he did not have time for this cat and mouse bullshit. There were far more important things for him to be dealing with right now and this certainly wasn't one if them; feeling chaffed and raw he stood up quickly catching the assassin by surprise and that momentary advantage gave him the opportunity to swipe the tablet back. Although he strongly thought that Natasha had let him take it back on purpose. Without a second thought he strode toward the door not looking back, his head swimming with the sudden change in altitude.

"Tony..."

Tiny hesitated; Natasha had called him by his first name, Natasha _never_ called him by his first name not even in 'Oh holy fuck we're all about to die' situations. The significance of the gesture was not lost on him and he turned back to the woman who was perched on the couch eyes watching his speculatively.

It pained him to admit it but he really did like Romanoff; there was only so much badassery you could watch a woman do before you gained a healthy liking and respect for them. Oh and the fear, can't forget the fear, he'd be stupid not to at the very least be wary of the woman; he seen her do things with her little finger (and to be fair her enemies fingers) that just beggared belief. But in the whole time he'd known her she had never called him _just_ Tony, not even when she'd been working undercover.

It was a strangely intimate gesture that spoke of camaraderie forged in the heat of battle and for once Tony wasn't going to be Tony Stark he was going to be _just_ Tony.

"What Tasha?" And fuck it; in for a penny in for a pound.

Natasha wasn't outwardly shocked by the use that name but a hint of a wry smile very briefly curled at the corner of her lips before disappearing under the solemn look.

"Why did Pepper go?"

For the briefest of moments he honestly considered spinning her that bullshit 'Work-Stuff' line but he knew she'd see straight through it. She had _always_ had the uncanny knack to see straight through his crap even when she'd been playing the role of Natalie Rushman and she'd _barely_ known him then. He guessed it was what made her so good at her job and also made her, at times, incredibly annoying. With a sigh he ran his free hand through his hair absent-mindedly noting that it could do with a trim and settled on telling the truth.

"Because I asked her to."

It wasn't an easy admission not by any stretch of the imagination and Natasha could clearly see that; it didn't however stop her next question.

"Why Tony?"

The billionaire wasn't used to feeling uncomfortable and boy was he feeling it now. There were many answers to the assassin's question; none of them pretty but he knew that the woman sat in front of him would take that as an excuse. Simplicity, this was what he needed now.

"Because I needed her safe." His voice was low.

The red head looked confused; as if to say a house full of superheroes isn't safe enough and he got that, he could understand the confusion and the beautiful, cruel and bitter irony in the statement that Natasha saw.

"Safe from what Tony?" There was a bitter amusement lacing her tone.

And here they were; right down to the brass tax of things.

"Me."

This time Natasha genuinely did look shocked at his answer her eyes slightly bugging out of their sockets.

"What the hell are you talking about Stark?"

Back to last names, yup she was definitely pissed. Tony sighed and pulled up the article on the tablet walking back toward where the assassin was sitting and held it out to her. She snatched it with a little more force than neccessary due to her irritation and Tony watched with a detatched gaze as she absorbed the information. He could see the emotions flitting across her face; shock, sadness before she settled on a look of fury that would have even gods thinking twice before approaching her.

"This is serious, we need to tell the others now." The intent in her voice was obvious, she wanted to make the world burn for this.

Natasha flipped herself off the couch with the intention of rousing the rest of the team and in a rather bold move Tony grabbed hold of her bicep halting her in her tracks. Green eyes flashed pure venom but the Widow didn't strike.

"No." Tony said flatly, eyes glistening like tempered steel.

"You can't be serious! They have a right to know."

"And they will..." The billionaire replied "... First thing in the morning, there is no immediate danger so let them get their rest."

The assassin looked as if she wanted to argue some more but she could see the logic in having well rested allies. She pulled her arm free of Tony's grasp, glaring at the offensive appendage before quickly composing herself.

"Fine, but if you don't then I will and it will not be pleasant for you."

Tony barked a dry laugh that held absolutely no humour and his resulting quip lacked the warmth and enthusiasm they usually did.

"Whatever you say _Natalie_. Geez with friends like you who needs enemies."

The Widow smiled in that mysterious way of hers that left the billionaire unsure as to whether she was about to seduce or kill him, killing him being the more likely option.

" _Friends_ Tony, exactly."

With that she handed him the tablet back and brushed past him heading toward the room she had claimed for herself leaving a bewildered looking Tony in her wake clutching the tablet to his chest like a soft toy. He sat back down on the couch and settled down for the night already convinced that he wasn't going to sleep and waited for the morning to dawn.

Because as the good book said 'Joy cometh in the morning.'

 _Yeah_ , he thought sarcastically. _Joy_.

~End Chapter Nineteen.~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: *Bangs head on table repeatedly* Ugh this chapter was so hard. Thanks to y'all for sticking by this I loves all you guys.


	20. Chapter Twenty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony informs The Avengers about the latest twist in the tale and the receive a visit from an unwelcome but not unwanted guest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Uh... hey guys. Just a quick note to say that I'm not dead... And well to apologize for the slow updating. My life has been pretty hectic recently so I'm using this to make my excuses ;P

Chapter Twenty

Tony roused the next morning to a crick in his neck and a screaming ache in his back that threatened to render him completely immobile for at least the next few hours or until he got his first dose of caffeine; whatever came first. He'd known falling asleep on a couch,no matter how comfortable, was always a bad idea but the billionaire just hadn't wanted to move and his body had finally surrendered to exhaustion sometime close to dawn.

Groggily he let his gaze wander around the cavernous room and noticed that he was still alone _thank god,_ it was far too early to be dealing with this shit right now. A quick glance at the tablet still humming against his chest confirmed the time and the fact that he'd been asleep for just under two hours. With a small moan of pain Tony stretched his body in an attempt to work out the knots in his muscles but only really succeeded in making the pain worse. Not content with being idle he pushed himself into a standing position with a growl of frustration and made for the kitchen toward his much needed beverage.

The billionaire was purposefully avoiding looking at anything as he walked the familiar path to the kitchen in the hopes of finding some coffee but he couldn't entirely suppress the nostalgia that gripped his heart. This place was filled with so many memories both bad and good, although mostly bad if he were being honest and it was hard not to lose himself in the past. The kitchen door loomed in front of him, much smaller than he remembered and Tony swore he could hear the ghost of his younger self causing havoc beyond the hard wood door. With a slight smile he pushed the door open and headed inside.

Thankfully when Pepper had gotten her minions to procure them takeout last night they'd also been commanded to pick up some essentials (i.e coffee, tea and anything else that the team needed to function after a hard mission) and the billionaire was pleased to see them ready and waiting for him on the granite counter. The pleasure faded quickly when he noticed that it was a store brand instant and not the ridiculously over priced blend he usually drank, however resigned to his fate and in dire need of some caffeine he flipped the kettle on.

"I'm actually surprised you know how to use a kettle, I thought it would be a little too low tech for you."

Bruce's amused but still sleep-toughened voice echoed across the cavernous kitchen and Tony looked up with a small smirk on his face. He had not expected the other man up for several more hours knowing that the after effects of a transformation usually lasted a good while after it had reversed. Not that he was complaining, he was honestly glad that Bruce was the first one up it meant he didn't have to put up quite as much of a facade.

"I did go to college you know.." He retorted with a snort "There were only so many times you could stomach cafeteria food and noodles in a cup became a handy alternative."

The physicist laughed softly understanding exactly where Tony was coming from and took a seat at the breakfast bar eyeing the teabags with as much disdain as Tony had the coffee before stopping himself and laughing again as the billionaire shot him a questioning look.

"I've gotten spoiled, I remember a time when I would have killed for generic brand teabags."

There was a slightly wistful tone to Bruce's voice and Tony couldn't quite stop himself from frowning slightly at it. He didn't like the idea of Bruce living in such frugal circumstances where even a shitty cup of tea was considered a luxury and Tony didn't even want to contemplate what the physicist _had_ drank in such times. Seeing the look on his friend's face Bruce sighed and shook his head.

"Honestly Tony it wasn't that bad." He said softly.

Which in 'Bruce-Speak' translated into _it is_ _ **just**_ _as bad as you think Tony and probably worse._

"Enough about me, what's wrong with you Stark?"

The physicist expertly deflected the conversation as he picked up the whistling kettle and poured the boiling water into the cups, placing Tony's to the side so he could pick it up at his leasure. Tony grunted under his breath at the abrupt change in topic and cautiously took a sip of his coffee; pleasantly surprised when it didn't taste like utter crap even if it was a little bitter. He gazed down into the inky depths of the beverage as though it held the answers to the universe before sighing deeply.

"What isn't wrong Banner? Everything about this whole situation is a whole fucking cornucopia of _wrong_."

His knuckles turned white as his grip around the mug tightened; so much so that Tony thought it would shatter.

"We'll get him back Tony." Bruce replied calmly.

The billionaire grit his teeth "It's not just him Bruce! Everything is going to shit, I've never fucked up more spectacularly in my entire life and trust me when I say that's an achievement. It's bad enough that those fuckers managed to take him back but now with everything else..."

Tony stopped himself realizing that he had perhaps said too much and if the thoughtful, inquisitive and slightly peeved look on Bruce's face was any indication he had said way, _way_ too much.

"Everything else?" His tone was calm but steely and it caused Tony to wince slightly.

Knowing he was trapped once again thanks to his big mouth the billionaire resigned himself to his fate. He'd known that he was going to have to tell them about the goings on in the world at some point (or face the Black Widow's wrath) but he'd been hoping to have had at least three more cups of coffee and have hidden himself away in Howard's old lab for a bit before having to confront that particular problem.

However as usual karma was being a cruel bitch.

"Okay..." He sucked in a deep breath "...So those Council assholes may have ensured that the shit has well and truly hit the fan..."

Bruce quirked an eyebrow as he took a sip of his tea. It wasn't as if he hadn't been expecting further retaliation from the WSC; they had pretty much vowed to drag Tony's and the Avengers name through the mud. What was worrying though was the extent that the billionaire was shaken up and it caused lump of ice to form in the pit of Bruce's stomach, this could not be good and in the back of his mind Hulk roared in agreement.

"What did they do?"

"They..."

The word was clipped and forced out through gritted teeth before the billionaire gave up and handed Bruce the tablet much like he had done to Natasha the night before and allowed the physicist to draw his own conclusions. Bruce's brows knitted together as he read the articles and watched the various news reports that had been circling from the previous day. The picture they painted was certainly not a pretty one and he felt his grip on the tablet tighten exponentially, the thin, smooth metal creaking slightly. The physicist took a deep steadying breath before handing the tech back to Tony, a flash of green ringing the iris of his deep brown eyes and it somehow makes the billionaire feel a little better knowing that both Bruce and Hulk are outraged on his behalf.

"They are really pulling out all the stops aren't they..."

Bruce's voice is calm but there was definite anger behind it and Tony felt a shudder run through him. The billionaire nodded slowly taking a long sip of his coffee and pulling a face as the bitter coffee hit the back of his tongue.

"Yeah... They're making as it as difficult as possible for me to make a move, or even show my face in public and I don't hold up much hope for them laying off the rest of you guys for long. Not even Captain America will be immune and the media will lap this bullshit up."

Tony's eyes darkened with a raw, fierce anger and his jaw clenched as he bit down on his lower lip. It wasn't often he despaired of the time in which he'd grown up but right now he hated the information age with everything he had, as he sat on the precipice of falling and failing so completely.

"Speaking of Steve..." The physicist said quietly "... Does he know about this yet?"

A dark head shook a no, almost as if the billionaire didn't trust his voice to speak a near impossibility under most circumstances.

"Don't you think we should tell him."

Tony opened his mouth to reply that _yes_ he _had_ been planning in telling Steve but was cut off as the man in question waltzed into the kitchen, hair damp and a towel laid around his broad shoulders. He raised a suspicious eyebrow at the two scientists.

"Tell who, what exactly Doc?"

Bruce froze for a split second before relaxing and shooting the billionaire a questioning look, Tony sighed in reply folding his arms across his chest and looking every bit the spoilt child he often professed to be. After a moment the stare out between the two of them ended and Tony threw his hands up in exasperation.

"For the record I _was_ going to tell everyone." He muttered lowly so that only Bruce could hear before turning his attention back to the Captain. "Okay so there may be a problem."

Steve's arched eyebrow raised further and his blue eyes pierced the billionaire as effectively as bullets.

"Problem?"

Tony gave a weak smile that was more of a grimace.

"Yeah... Get the rest of the gang together and I'll explain."

Twenty minutes later found all of the Avengers congregated in the kitchen in various states of sleep and undress while Bruce manned the range making a gigantic pile of French toast. Bruce's reasoning was that although they were considered super heroes (something that still shocked him to no end) they were still (mostly) human and therefore required sustenance to work and optimal efficiency. Not that the others were complaining about his sudden desire to cook, especially if the complete silence from Thor and Clint was any indication.

"So..." Steve started, a chunk of toast hanging from his fork "What is going on."

Tony drummed his fingers on the granite counter seemingly at ease but the tension in his body was obvious to anyone who knew him well.

"Well... The WSC has decided that they want to be a bunch of assholes."

There was a look of obviousness on all of the gathered Avengers' faces and Bruce snorted softly and muttered an 'understatement of the century' under his breath, glaring darkly at the glass tablet that lay harmlessly on the counter. Thor, Clint and Steve all caught the dark gaze and peered at the tablet cautiously as though it were about to explode. Within a few minutes the entire situation had come to light and the rest of the team looked thunderous, almost literally so in Thor's case.

"How dare these mortals besmirch your good name! They play with people's lives as if they were nothing and think little of the consequences."

The Asgardian was literally fuming, little wisps of highly charged air rising from his body as he fought to control his temper and not accidental blow something up. Steve's face was pulled down in a dark frown that suddenly made everyone in the room extremely glad that he was on their side and Clint looked downright _murderous_ at viewing the information, his hand twitching. Tony felt himself smile very slightly. Often in the past people had said that they had his back and then either abandoned him or stabbed him in it, so it was fair to say he had been slightly disbelieving when this ragtag bunch of abnormally awesome people had said that they had his back. Even now after everything they'd been through, the constant assurances he'd still found it hard to believe. But actually _seeing_ _it_ , seeing the looks of pure outrage on his teammates and dare he say _friends_ faces the truth of the matter hit home; they really were in this for the long haul and would stand by him on this.

He pointedly ignored the little tingle of joy at the thought.

"So Cap, what's the plan?" He asked thickly, swallowing the lump in his throat.

The piercing blue eyes narrowed in thought and Steve was about to speak when a new, gruff voice entered the conversation.

"The plan is that you bunch of miscreants stay out of sight until the council decide that sparing your lives will actually benefit them."

The six Avengers turned to the open kitchen doorway to see a stern faced Nick Fury leaning against the frame. They all resolutely Did. Not. Jump at the intrusion instead putting on the blandest expressions possible and staring down the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D, well everyone except Tony that was.

"What the fuck!? Why the hell does everyone think they can just waltz in here like they fucking own the place because I'm telling you right now they fucking don't."

Fury cocked an eyebrow at Stark almost in amusement but didn't move from his position at the door, across the kitchen both Natasha's and Clint's hands subconsciously wandered toward the kitchen knives. The Director was not impressed.

"Stand down Barton, Romanoff. I'm not here to fight you."

Widow and Hawkeye relaxed minutely as if seeming to realise what their reflexes were doing and continued their staring contest with the other man. The billionaire, over tired and clearly exasperated weighed in with another verbal barb.

"Then why are you here Nicky? Because the _only_ reason I can see for you being here is to drag us kicking and screaming to those fuck-monkeys at the council, so have to be honest here you're not exactly filling me with confidence."

To the Avengers great surprise Fury gave a quick snort of laughter and rolled his eyes.

"Stark does your mouth actually have an off setting? Because right now it would be really _fucking_ useful considering I'm actually here to help you."

Tony's suspicion had clearly bled through into the other Avengers as they were all glaring at the Director with thinly veiled contempt and he felt himself sigh. He really didn't have time for this posturing shit. Fury was on a limited time span enough as it was and he knew that very soon the Council would realise he'd left the helicarrier and for what purpose. Well they would, if Stark didn't _shut_ _up_ and let him get on with what he had to do.

"How about _no_ Dread-pirate Roberts and you get the fuck out of here." The billionaire was starting to build up steam, happy to vent on a convenient target.

Nick grit his teeth together in frustration. "I _just_ said I'm here to help you Stark, what part of that don't you understand?"

Stark's dark eyes narrowed with a somewhat manic sheen.

"How about the fucking stupid part where you asked us, _asked_ _me_ , to lay low while my last living family member is probably tortured and dissected by a bunch of fucking crazed politicians because _I_ _FUCKED_ _UP_!"

The words were out of his mouth before they could stop them and Tony felt his heart, not stop exactly but certainly skip a couple of beats as he realised how vulnerable he'd just let himself become. There was absolute silence as the words sunk in. He gazed at his teammates, searching for the barest hint of agreement at his proclamation but instead he found equally guilty stares being returned and he understood what they meant at once.

_This is our fault as well._

"We all fucked up..." Said Fury calmly speaking the thoughts everyone was thinking. "And you're right laying low is stupid but I had to at least _attempt_ to do this by the book for posterity but believe me when I say I want these assholes taken down as much as you do. They've forgotten what the council was created for and are only out to further their own ambitions."

There is an extreme bitterness in his tone and for the first time since Tony met Fury the man actually seemed to show his age, the creases of his face seeming more pronounced and that single eye just looking so, _so_ tired. It was enough to render the billionaire into abashed silence, no mean feat considering how riled up he'd been mere moments ago. The fact that Fury, _the_ Nick Fury, spy among spies was so affected by the situation as to let actual emotion show really didn't sit well with older man seemed to ignore his silent, curious stare though in favour of folding his arms across his chest in a clearly defensive gesture.

"So what would you have us do now director? Because quite frankly I'm tired of playing nice with these people."

Steve's question is uttered so quietly that everyone jumps almost as if they'd forgotten the man was sat there with them. His eyes were cold, hard and filled with an emotion that none of them could quite put a finger on. It made them feel like their spines were trying to crawl out from under their skin, not that they would ever show it. It was unnerving enough to think that Captain America possessed such a look.

Nick however just kept an impassive mask on his face although there was a slight quirk of his lips the suggested a vicious smirk as he answered, holding out an A5 sized brown envelope to the team.

"Do what you do best Captain, _avenge_."

Captain America _smirked_.

~End Chapter Twenty.~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Finally finished. I'm so sorry this has taken so long and thanks so much for you patience (and sympathy XP)


	21. Chapter Twenty-One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Fury complicates things further without even being there, a plan is hatched and Tony finds something he'd thought had been lost.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uggggggh. Seriously I hate being ill, 2014 has basically consisted of me being ill and feeling like a goddamned invalid. Not great when you're trying to write. So sorry for lateness.

Daddy Dearest.

Chapter Twenty One.

The director didn't linger for long after handing the envelope to the Captain, he merely nodded at Barton and Romanoff before disappearing back into the shadows from whence he came. Tony tried and failed to not feel disturbed with the ease at which he did it, the sneaky ninja bastard and instead he turned his stare on Steve, who was gazing at the envelope with his brow furrowed slightly.

"So Capsicle, what did Ragetti give you?" He tried to inject some humour into his voice but it fell flat.

The soldier looked confused as he often did when Tony started throwing pop-culture references and with a swift flick of a finger tore open the seal of the envelope. Inside there was a single slip of paper and carefully he pulled it out, unsure as if it was going explode in his hand or not. He turned the cream coloured paper over and his blue eyes focused on the single line of curly cursive.

"It's an address..." He said bluntly.

The other five Avengers gathered around to look for themselves, the same identical thought passing through all their minds as they realised what exactly it was Fury had given them. However Tony found himself cursing under his breath as recognition set in, of course the bastards would pull something like this just to twist the knife a little deeper and further prove their point.

 _Bastards_.

"Tony?" Bruce asked suddenly concerned.

The billionaire swallowed down the angry snarl that was working it's way up his throat.

"I know this place."

The curious stares intensified and Tony elaborated, a gnawing feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach.

"It's was one of mine... From back before Afghanistan, one of the weapons development plants... But after... I shut it down... " He faltered slightly, feeling the sting of old wounds being exposed to salt, the phrase 'when I was the Merchant of Death' remaining unsaid. "... It's where we did most of the government contract stuff, shady and otherwise."

Here he turned a steady gaze at Bruce and the physicist clicked on to his meaning immediately.

"It's where you developed the Hulkbusters."

His voice was cool but there was an intensity in his stare that made Tony feel like a cowed child, then almost as soon as it emerged it receded and the calm tranquillity that they were used to returned.

The billionaire just nodded stiffly and didn't say anymore on _that_ particular subject.

"Thing is, because of what was being _done_ there it means that the place is pretty much like Fort Knox... except y'know better."

No one groaned but he could feel the frustration in the air around them almost like a physical shroud, the question 'Why couldn't anything _ever_ be simple?' Hanging over them, unspoken. That however didn't stop the team from plowing into the problem head first, they truly didn't understand the _meaning_ of the word impossible and Tony had never been grateful for that.

"So, what you're saying is that the place is pretty much a fortress?" Asked Clint, devil-may-care grin affixed firmly to his face.

Beside him Natasha rolled her eyes at her partner's enthusiasm but there was the ghost of a smirk twitching at her own lips and Tony could already see her brain working around the gauntlet that had been thrown down. Beside her Thor's eyes gleamed with the thrill of a challenge, while Steve's was cool and calculating.

The billionaire nodded then frowned "Yeah... The whole works plus a few additions I added myself. Which kinda sucks because I made them to be impenetrable to scanning equipment and even if I did build something to scan it the AI running the place would recognise it as a threat and activate the defence systems. Have to be honest this is the one time I wish I wasn't such a genius"

There was a brief snort of laughter.

"Inflated egos aside..." Bruce started as Tony protested "... If we go in there we're going to be expecting trouble, so perhaps trouble is what we should aim for. Nothing is more devastating than a bit of controlled chaos as we saw yesterday."

The Avengers faces darkened at the reminder of the attack on their home but it was a fact that needed to reiterated.

"The good doctor is right. If we go in expecting to meet our foes head on we can strike first and inflict grievous damage upon them before they have the ability to react." Thor boomed out,

Steve smirked again, the smile somehow more terrifying and disturbing than his 'Captain America look of doom'.

"Take the initiative... Gotta admit I'm a fan of that plan."

"Seconded and thirded..." Natasha answered for both herself and Clint, a distinctly vicious edge to her voice.

Tony felt a genuine smile break out across his face but it quickly twisted into his trademark mischievous grin, ready to charm and devastate with a quick flick of a silvered tongue.

He quirked an eyebrow. "So, Avengers assemble?"

Nearly two hours later found Bruce and Tony exploring the basement labs of the manor, Tony had gone over in as much detail as possible the schematics for the research base and what sort of security protocols they were likely to be dealing with and during the discussion Bruce had mentioned something about a recalibrated radiation scanner that had set his science and engineering senses tingling.

_"I thought it would be useful for tracking Howard down within the compound, the nano-bots were giving off some pretty unique radiation signatures and I'm pretty sure I remember the frequencies. I figured the faster we find him the faster we can get out of there, y'know big flash entrance, quick tactical withdrawal kind of thing."_

Tony had been almost giddy with joy at the idea and it was nice to feel that sense of normality even for the briefest of moments, that was until he'd realised it would involve them going down into the manors labs. Into _H_ _oward'_ _s_ lab. He'd almost shot the idea down completely because of that but quickly understood that if he wanted this to be done, to be _finished_ then he would have to face down a few more of his demons.

So the two of them had delved deep into the bowels of the manor with the aim of finding something that wasn't years past it's sell by date and that they could hopefully fashion into a makes shift scanner. But Tony had to admit (and it pained him to do so) that the whole experience wasn't exactly a walk in the park, everywhere he looked he saw snippets of the past and he could feel the tension in the long, heavy silences.

So, as it turned out, could Bruce.

He could see the uneasiness and tension in his friend and he wanted to ask so, so badly, to try and help alleviate some of the billionaire's obvious discomfort (and admittedly to satisfy a small portion of his curiosity) but he was worried about triggering something _unpleasant_ that could make the whole situation much, much worse.

The physicist watched as Tony absent-mindedly wandered around the lab, his hands occasionally brushing over the half finished prototypes and schematics with a kind of reverent awe, his eyes glistening with some deep, unfathomable emotion that was sort of melancholical in it's composition and Bruce found he couldn't keep it to himself any longer, he _had_ to ask.

Anything to break the silence that had suddenly become stifling.

"Tony are you okay?"

The billionaire seemed to freeze as the man spoke, so lost in his memories it was as if he'd almost forgotten Bruce was even there. He turned with a sudden jerky movement and flashed his friend a quick, bright and hollow grin.

"Peachy keen Big Guy." Tony answered with obviously faked honesty.

Bruce in reply shot him. _The. Look._

After a brief but intense stare-out Tony relented.

"Okay, so maybe peachy-keen was a bit of a little white lie but seriously it's nothing I can't handle. Now, we have science to be doing Dr Banner and it isn't going to do itself."

The physicist raised an eyebrow, in disbelief or exasperation Tony couldn't tell but it appeared that his usually emotionally constipated friend wasn't about to let this drop.

Just great.

He was too tired to be dealing with this shit.

"Tony..." Bruce said quietly

"Listen, it's nothing against you but I'd rather not talk about the shit that is going through my head right now, just take it that I'm having a bit of a memory overload and it's making it kind of hard to focus on the problem at hand."

Tony wanted to kick himself at the slightly forlorn look on Bruce's face but right here and right now was not the time for him to start dealing with his 'issues'. The physicist seemed to take the hint and nodded albeit a tad stiffly.

"Okay, I'll leave it _for now_..." He said a little awkwardly "...But you have to talk sometime otherwise it will just end up poisoning you, take it from someone who has a fair amount of experience with it."

The self-effacing voice hid much darker undertones and the billionaire swallowed around the lump that had suddenly welled up in his throat at the thought of his friend having to deal with all those kinds of thoughts on his own and the dark path it had lead the physicist down. He took a moment to push those disturbing thoughts aside not wanting to imagine that feeling of absolute, crushing solitude and despair, instead he flashed a crooked smile probably looked as fake as it felt but his words were at least, honest.

"I will."

Bruce gave another nod, seemingly satisfied and turned to one of the many scrap heaps and began rummaging through it for parts. After a few moments Tony eventually joined him and soon the usual banter (well Tony's banter and Bruce's exasperated looks) flew between them as if they were in their own labs and in little under an hour they had cobbled most of the components for the scanner, exhausting the visible piles of components in the process.

Meaning that they were going to have to broaden their search for those last few vital parts.

Tony headed to the far side of the laboratory where there was a pile of sheet metal stacked against the wall and began hauling them aside causing a raucous amount of noise. He often remembered Howard using the gaps behind them to hide important things and it appeared that this was one of the older spots. As he cleared the last of the metal aside Tony peered down into the small gap to see what had been concealed and felt the breath leave his lungs like he had been punched.

The billionaire had known from a young age that his father was not a sentimental man.

But for whatever reason he'd kept _this_.

And damnit he could feel those evil tears pricking at his eyes again.

Bruce, noticing the sudden silence cautiously crept over to where his friend was standing, a worried frown on his face.

"Tony, what's wrong? Did you find...?"

"He kept it..." Tony broke in, his voice weak and slightly in awe "After all those years, all that bad blood he kept it..."

The physicist was now thoroughly confused and he peered around his friend's still form to see what he was focused so intently on. In the small alcove surrounded by metal debris and other mechanical flotsam was a small combustion engine mounted on a plinth, Bruce's mind suddenly recalled something from Tony's file and realisation dawned.

"Is that...?" He asked, somewhat shocked.

"Yeah..." The other man replied "It's the first engine I ever built..."

~Flashback~

_Tony was sitting in his bedroom casually disassembling and reassembling one of the toys his mother had gotten him the previous day. He appreciated what she was trying to do but he was just so_ _**bored** _ _. Summer holidays officially sucked. He checked the bolts on the Evel Knievel stunt bike once more and happy they were secure, revved it up and let rip. The small bike skitted along the carpet before slamming into the closed wooden door of his bedroom at full speed and not for the first time the youngster wished it was him riding the bike._

_The young Tony grinned in triumph and went to retrieve the toy from its resting place, just about managing to not jump when a sharp rap came at the door._

_"Master Anthony?"_

_Jarvis's voice sounded through the wood and Tony bounded back from the door with a slightly guilty look on his face, the elderly butler always seemed to know when he was up to no good. The youngster quickly made sure that all the evidence of his tinkering was hidden before he answered._

" _Here Jarvis, come in."_

_The door slowly creaked inwards and the familiar figure of the Stark family butler appeared in the open doorway. There was an uncertain look on his face that Tony had never seen there before and immediately didn't like, Jarvis knew everything; it was an impossibility to his young mind that there was something that would make him uncertain. The look however quickly faded and he smiled that old, worn smile that Tony was so used to; affectionate but at the same time long suffering._

" _Your father wishes to speak with you."_

_Tony froze at that, his father never wanted to speak to him about anything. The last time they had 'spoken' about anything had been that time where he'd been once again caught in his lab looking for spare parts; he could still feel the sting of the tongue lashing after that particular talk. He turned fearful eyes up at the elderly man, whose expression softened slightly._

" _You are not in trouble young master, of that I can assure you."_

_This confused the young child, his father never wanted anything to do with him unless he'd done something wrong; this was a fact that had been conditioned into him over his five and a half years of life._

" _Then... Why?"_

_Jarvis didn't reply but still had that omnipotent look on his face he always had when he knew that although Tony may not like what was about to happen it was in his best interests. Reluctantly Tony got to his feet and brushed himself down, knowing that if he arrived looking anything but his best then his father would be annoyed and moved toward the doorway, steeling himself for whatever he was about to face. The butler placed a reassuring hand on the child's shoulder and escorted him down to where Howard was waiting._

_The youngster tried not to shudder as Jarvis lead him toward his father's basement lab but he knew that the older man felt the tension held in his small body. He gave Tony's shoulder a reassuring squeeze and then knocked on the heavy, reinforced door to the laboratory, both of them waiting for the invitation to enter._

" _Come in."_

_Tony shoved down the feeling of dread as Jarvis pushed open the door and steered them inside his hand firmly planted on the child's shoulder. Whether it was a show of support or just a means to an end Tony didn't know but he was grateful for the grounding touch. As usual his father was sat behind the main workbench his face shrouded in darkened goggles and a welding torch grasped in one of his hands. For a moment it didn't even seem like Howard had even noticed they'd entered and then with one sharp movement he turned to them, eyes zeroing in on the youngster._

_"Thank you Jarvis, you may go." He said utterly blandly._

_The youngster turned wide, pleading eyes up at the butler whose face was as impassive as ever but he nodded and gave his shoulder a quick squeeze before turning and walking out of the lab, leaving the two Stark's alone._

_Tony gulped and tried to hold in his fear._

_"Come here boy."_

_Tony quelled the anger that shot through him at being spoken to,_ _**ordered** _ _like an animal and instead stumbled forward, eyes trained firmly on the ground and away from Howard's piercing be-goggled gaze. He stood at the edge of the workbench and forced himself not to fidget. The elder Stark either unconcerned or oblivious to his sons discomfort turned back to his project before speaking._

_"It has been brought to my attention that I have not been giving enough notice to you and your_ _**'gifts'** _ _, so today I am going to try and rectify that."_

_There was no hint of Howard's usual sneer and Tony noticed with shock that the usual smell of what he now knew to be whiskey was currently not seeping from the older man. The absence of these two things thoroughly confused the youngster and he bit his lip nervously waiting to see what his father had in store for him, past experience had predicted that it wouldn't be good._

_"Your mother has told me that you have taken a keen interest in mechanics and are becoming quite inquisitive about how things fit together..." Here Howard paused pulled out a box full of parts. "Impress me."_

_Tony felt like his young mind had been blown, his father_ _**never** _ _wanted anything to do with him and_ _**certainly** _ _**never** _ _gave him any opportunity to tinker. Suspecting some kind of trap he eyed the box warily before shooting a suspicious look at the older man, who once again had turned back to whatever project he was working on. He didn't appear to be paying attention to Tony but he knew that was about as far from the truth as it could be._

_"That is of course if you_ _**want** _ _to show me what you can do."_

_The words were barbed and Tony felt the sting, his teeth clacking together as he bit back the retort. Wordlessly he pulled the box of parts toward him and quickly sorted through them and from what he see he had the parts for a small combustion engine. Admittedly this was a little more complicated than anything else he had built so far but he wasn't going to back down from his father's challenge._

_And so he set to work._

_Hours passed._

_Not that Tony noticed; he was far too preoccupied with his project, the challenge enthralling and relishing that he could, for once, get down and dirty with something more technical than a clockwork toy. He was_ _**not** _ _going to waste a single second of this opportunity as he knew full well that it may never happen again. Finally after what had seemed like half an hour to the youngster but had in fact been closer to seven Tony was finally finished. He admired his creation with a critical eye and allowed himself a small triumphant grin._

_It was perfect._

_He turned to his father to try and gain the man's attention but was shocked to see that the older man was already watching him intently, eyes burning bright with an emotion unseen by Tony before today. Self-consciousness flooded through the child and he quickly dropped his gaze to the floor completely unsure of what to do or say. His shock increased when he felt a large hand roughly tussle his hair in an almost affectionate manner._

_Then his father spoke._

_"Good job Anthony."_

_The words burned through Tony, not in an unpleasant way, but in a way that made his skin tingle with warmth and a bubble of pure happiness expand in his chest making it hard to breathe._

_His father had_ _**complimented** _ _him._

_**Him.** _

_Anthony_ _Edward_ _Stark._

_And to the tiny five year old, that meant more than anything,_ _**anything** _ _in the world._

~End flashback~

Tony swallowed around the lump in his throat and felt his resolve harden at the remembrance that Howard was capable of actual human emotions such as compassion. He may have been a bastard for the vast majority of Tony's life but he was still a human being, super serum or not and therefore didn't deserve to have any of _this_ happening to him.

Some other things _maybe_ but not this.

He turned to Bruce his jaw set like tempered steel with fire blazing in his eyes and the physicist felt himself gasp, somewhat awestruck at the abrupt change in his friend.

"Do you have everything you need Bruce?"

Bruce nodded, his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth rendering him speechless. He hadn't seen the other man look that determined in quite a while.

"Then let's get started, I want to be working on getting the Mark five online as soon as possible."

The two men said nothing more after this point, far too engrossed in radiation signatures, biomechanics and engineering to even notice the world passing them by.

~End Chapter Twenty One.~


	22. Chapter Twenty-Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Steve and Natasha discover more about Tony's past influences and Tony and Bruce discuss contingencies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tah-dah! Relatively speedy update ftw.

Daddy Dearest

Chapter Twenty Two.

The hours flew by in what seemed like seconds not only for the pair of scientists that had holed themselves up in the lab in hardware mode but also for the rest of the team. After leaving both Tony and Bruce to their own devices the remaining members had taken to exploring the vast mansion that they had suddenly found themselves in. Some of them were looking out of sheer curiosity; others were looking for their own, infinitely more personal reasons.

Steve had never been given much of an opportunity to find out about those he had known 'back in the day', a combination of fear at what he'd find, confusion at the modern world, self-loathing and anger stopping him.

But now...

He'd been given unprecedented access to one of his good friend's home; a man who had changed so very drastically through the passage of time that he was almost unrecognisable and _dammit_ the Captain wanted some answers as to why. He knew he wouldn't get them from either Stark (he was convinced that he would see Howard again, he was not willing to give up on him despite the colossal ass that he'd been) and now a golden opportunity to learn about his friend and his teammate had fallen into his lap. The likelihood of such an opportunity happening again was virtually zero and he was determined not to waste such a valuable commodity.

The soldier moved along the corridors with a comfortable gait, he didn't attempt to be stealthy knowing that Tony would find out what he was up to regardless of his actions and at least this way it wouldn't seem like he was _trying_ to hide anything; he knew that would only serve to piss the billionaire off.

He had already searched through most of the lower floors, the rooms yielding very little except for the odd stilted family portrait. Steve tried not to wince at the obvious discomfort between the members of the Stark household, at the strained and forced smiles plastered across all three faces but it's a close thing. He can't even begin to imagine what it must have been like to live in such a household; he'd grown up surrounded by war and illness and that brought people together in ways you wouldn't believe.

The majority of the bedrooms on the upper floors were locked and the soldier respected that although he itched to see what was behind them. He did however find a few open doors and eagerly scoured the contents.

The first room was a large expansive room filled with a large four poster bed that was swathed in different shades of red. It looked like it had been recently inhabited if the disturbed dust was anything to go by and Steve realised that this must have been the room they had brought Bruce to the previous day. He stepped in cautiously not quite expecting what to find but somehow hoping that it would hold the answers he so desperately was seeking.

The soldier walked toward the small writing desk tucked away in the far corner of the room, figuring it was a good place to start. It was clearly an antique and was caked in dust but appeared to be in good condition even after years of neglect. With careful reverence Steve unlatched the sliding top and slid it back revealing the contents; unlike the rest of the room which seemed rather bare and impersonal despite the luxury the small bureau was stuffed full of photographs with the occasional letter interspersed among them. All the photos were of the same two people; Tony and (Steve assumed) his mother Maria. Steve tried not to think what the absence of Howard in all of the photo's meant and decided to just take in the pictures of a life that had passed him by while he slept. Most of the images were just like the stuffy and downright uncomfortable family portraits he'd found on the lower levels but every now and then there would be one genuine moment, one image that showed the real Tony underneath and his clear adoration for his mother.

The soldier couldn't help but crack a wry smile as he looked at the images of the younger Tony. For the first time since setting foot in this ghastly house he had found some really tangible proof that linked the man he knew with the child Howard had brought into the world. He could see the sass and attitude in the youngsters stance (who couldn't have been more than seven or eight) even as he had his arms wrapped around the slightly exasperated looking woman, big brown eyes (that were definitely his mothers, Tony might be the image of Howard but those sharp, liquid eyes were all from Maria) glaring at the person taking the photo.

But as quickly as the smile emerged it fell from his lips as he came to a startling realisation, just _how long_ had Tony been putting up his snarky asshole act for? And Steve knew it was an act, it had taken a while after they'd all moved into the tower but eventually the billionaire had lowered some of his guards and started to trust them and they'd all seen that most of the snark and assholery was just a show he put on to push people away.

But if these photo's were anything to go by he'd been doing this since he was a _child_ , a _god-damn_ child and Steve felt his stomach twist unpleasantly with a mixture of horror and anger.

This was _inhumane_.

With a growl the soldier slammed down the lid of the bureau, freezing when it creaked slightly and took a deep steadying breath. Giving into his anger wouldn't help anyone right now and besides he wasn't in possession of all of the facts it would be unfair of him to jump to conclusions. That however didn't stop him feeling the slightest bit guilty about the whole thing, he'd already figured out that the reason Howard wasn't in a lot of the photos was because he had been out searching for him and he couldn't help but wonder how life would have been different if he hadn't gone under the ice.

Shaking his head and immediately halting _that_ particular train of thought before it became too morbid Steve moved back from the bureau and into the centre of the room. He briefly contemplated stopping his self imposed mission but then decided against it, he wasn't a quitter, never had been and he would see this through to the end despite the personal discomfort. It didn't take him long to search the rest of the room despite its size and aside from the bureau the wasn't anything else that warranted a real look, it was all mostly feminine toiletries and clothing. What had unnerved his during his search however was the distinct lack of anything related to Howard. From everything he'd seen and heard he'd assumed that his friend and his wife had a fairly solid relationship or maybe that was yet another fallacy that had been projected to the outside world.

Steve retreated from the room closing the door behind him with a quiet click and headed down the corridor in search of the next open room. After a few minutes of searching he found another open door and with the same cautiousness he showed when entering Maria's room the soldier walked inside. Immediately Steve felt a smile tug at his lips because there was absolutely no mistaking whose room this was, even if the circuit boards mounted on the walls and the small pieces of robotics on the shelf hadn't made that abundantly clear. His smile broadened as he stepped further into Tony's childhood room his sharp blue eyes roaming over the contents, casually noticing the wealth of Captain America memorabilia mixed in with crude schematics drawn by a child-like hand.

It appeared that the billionaire hadn't always disliked what he'd stood for and for some reason that made his heart feel light and heavy at the same time.

Steve picked up one of the designs noticing the familiar looking chassis and could help but marvel at his friend's innovative mind even as a child. What had to be the first draft of DUM-E shone up from the page, a testament to what was to come.

"Find something interesting Captain?"

The soldier dropped the paper in shock and spun around trying not to look like a kid that had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar, Natasha had her usual neutral expression on her face but he could see the glimmer of amusement in her eyes.

"Uh..." He replied lamely.

The spy cracked a smile at that and walked into the room to stand beside him.

"Trying to find out more about Stark I see." There was something in her voice that reminded Steve of a mother grizzly.

"I uh... Yes. It seemed like a good opportunity."

Natasha didn't say anything but smiled mysteriously and gestured for him to follow her which Steve did without question; when the Black Widow asked you to follow you followed. The two of them left the upper floors and headed down into the bowels of the house, Steve growing steadily more confused as Natasha led him through what seemed to be a maze of corridors. She finally came to a halt outside an nondescript looking door and pushed it open leaning against the doorframe as she motioned the super soldier inside. He shot her a puzzled look and she merely shrugged in response.

"I found this place last night." Was all she said.

Unlike the rooms upstairs Steve somehow had the feeling he was intruding but Natasha was insisting and he trusted her with his life. Slowly he stepped inside and as he rose his gaze the soldier felt his breath catch in his throat.

There were pictures _everywhere._

The walls were literally _covered_ in photographs and while not all of them were of Tony there was certainly a lot containing the billionaire. Steve gazed almost wondrously at the photographs happy at finally finding what he had been looking for, he could see the different sides of his friend from the rebellious youth to the distinguished (ish) scholar. His eyes zeroed in on what appeared to be Tony's graduation photo; Maria was standing there looking wary but proud but it wasn't Howard that stood on Tony's opposite side. The man was several years older than Maria and had a slightly worn look to him, not scruffy exactly, just muted around the edges slightly but he had the same proud look on his face that Tony's mother did and if the arm slung around the man's shoulder was anything to go by then the billionaire was just as happy to have the man there. Steve's eyes combed across the walls and everywhere he looked the man appeared in the photographs along with Tony and every time regardless of age the look of happiness on the younger man's face was genuine.

"Who is he?" Steve asked unable to hide the curiosity in his voice.

Natasha smiled softly, that rare gentle smile she usually only reserved for one of them when they were doing something she secretly found adorable.

"He used to be the Stark family butler, he pretty much raised Stark when he was a kid."

"Used to be?"

The spy's smile turned sad. "He passed away just before Stark's twenty-first birthday, just as he was inheriting Stark Industries."

Steve felt a pang of sorrow at that, Tony lost a lot of important people at a time he wasn't really emotionally ready to deal with it but then again was anyone ever really ready for it? He'd had his own experiences with loss and even now the ghosts still haunted him, Tony was probably no different.

"That's too bad, I would have like to have met him. I'm sure he would have some interesting stories to tell." He kept his voice painfully neutral while Natasha gave a quiet laugh.

"That sounds correct; from what I've been told he was quite an interesting man. He'd have to be to have such a lingering effect on Tony Stark."

"Lingering effect?" Steve sounded confused.

Mischief danced in Widow's eyes and she merely clicked her tongue in slight annoyance at his apparent obliviousness.

"The man's name is Edwin, Edwin _Jarvis_."

The Captain's eyes bugged out of his head slightly as he made the connection and he was pretty sure his jaw had dropped open.

"You mean...? Tony always said it was just an acronym."

Natasha gave him the look, the one that screamed 'are you some kind of idiot' and just folded her arms across her chest.

"Stark tells us a lot of things, doesn't always mean that they're true or at least mostly true."

Steve couldn't argue with that they all had the secret sentiments; ones that they didn't share with anyone unless they absolutely had to. This whole situation had uncovered a lot of home truths for them all not just Tony and it was still an adjustment period for the entire team but if it was the one thing the Avengers could be relied upon to do it was adapt. Suddenly feeling as if he'd wasted too much time the super soldier turned to Natasha his previous discomfort completely forgotten.

"We should go and see how far Bruce and Tony are off being ready."

Widow, and it was definitely the Black Widow, nodded understanding an order when she heard one. This was something they could come back to at another time, right now they had a mission to prepare for.

*Linebreak*

Bruce wiped the sweat from his brow and didn't even bother attempting to hide the triumphant smile. After hours of hard work the scanner was finally, _finally_ finished and everything looked like it was working within parameters. He cast his gaze over at Tony whose face was covered with a welding mask and coughed loudly to get his attention. There was a moment where he thought Tony hadn't heard him over the noise of the welding torch but then suddenly it was silent and the billionaire was lifting up the mask.

"What's up Big Guy?" There was a slightly manic edge to his voice.

The physicist held up the scanner and walked over to his friend to allow him to take a look.

"This is about as ready as it's ever going to be."

Tony grinned brightly and ran the torch between his hands clearly unable to sit still as he examined the scanner, he didn't touch but he didn't really need to; he trusted Bruce's judgment even if the man himself didn't always.

"Looking good. I've nearly fixed all the damage to the suit as well so not much longer and we'll be ready to rock and roll..."

Tony paused a second as if suddenly tongue tied and Bruce's brow knitted together.

"Tony...? What's wrong?"

The billionaire didn't answer right away staring at the suit with glassy eyes, his hand clenching tightly around the welding torch.

"What if this goes wrong?" Tony's voice was filled with self-doubt.

Bruce grimaced, the thought had crossed his mind but he hadn't really wanted to make an issue of it, it was in his nature to be pessimistic but he had faith in his friend, his friend who always seemed to get the job done no matter the odds.

"It won't." He replied sounding much surer than he felt.

The billionaire levelled him with a stare as if trying to pick apart his words, the manic gleam in his eyes from before gone and replaced with something else, something darker.

"It won't Tony." Bruce re-iterated.

"But what if it does? We'll be criminals forever and I can't do that to you guys."

Bruce snorted softly and ran a hand through his hair. "Most of us are already criminals Tony or did you forget that?"

Tony pursed his lips in unhappiness; he'd either forgotten that particular piece of information (unlikely) or he'd chosen to ignore it.

"Bruce if things go bad, I mean _really_ bad and you end getting separated from us or you have to run... I... Uhm well go to Grand Central, locker 317. There's an electronic lock, code is 6747336."

"Whoa Tony, what are you talking about? I don't understand." The physicist looked genuinely concerned by the sudden serious tone.

"I. I made a contingency plan when you and the rest of the team moved in. There was a high possibility that something like this whole situation with the WSC would happen eventually so I prepared. I set up safety boxes for all of you with money, fake passports, etcetera so if you wanted to go, escape, whatever you could."

Tony was very pointedly not looking at Bruce, he didn't want to see the look on his friends face knowing that it was probably a mixture of pity and anger. He was startled a moment later when a warm hand placed itself on his shoulder and drew him into a tentative hug. The billionaire felt his face heat at the beyond awkward gesture but he returned it with honest enthusiasm.

"Thank you. I mean I'll probably never use the damn thing because I'm not going anywhere if I can help it and I'm sure the others feel the same but it's... It's a relief to know it's there if I ever need it." Bruce murmured his voice low and filled with quiet awe.

Tony smiled nervously into the other man's shoulder and then pulled away, trying to cover up his awkwardness with his usual brash facade.

"Don't worry about it Big Guy, it was the least I could do."

The physicist rolled his eyes. "What, you mean besides the high tech labs and five star apartment? I honestly don't know what I did to deserve all this kindness."

It was the billionaire's turn to roll his eyes at the apparent stupidity of Bruce's comment. "You've all put up with my shit and not run screaming. It's more than most people have ever given me and... y'know it's... appreciated."

Bruce smiled in response "Yeah, right back at you Tony."

There was a moment of comfortable silence, a lot of words unspoken flying between them before they both turned back to their respective projects. Tony grinned as he pulled down his mask and flared up the welding torch again setting to work on the Mark 5 while Bruce began to clear away the debris from the scanner deep in thought and deeply touched by the gesture. He knew that he'd never need the safety box, he wasn't intending on going anywhere, but at least it was there and if it made his friend feel better then he'd let him have it.

It was the least he could do.

~End Chapter 22~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again to everyone. Your support has been AMAZING.
> 
> Oh and try and figure out what the electronic lock says :)


	23. Chapter Twenty-Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the Avengers have a road trip and the team discover one Avenger's hidden talents.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is kinda a filler chapter but it was fun to write even if it didn't turn out quite like I wanted it to. Oh well.
> 
> Thanks as always to everyone for supporting this story, you have no idea how much I appreciate it and I love all you guys for being awesome.

Chapter Twenty-Three.

The time passed quickly for the Avengers but at the same time it seemed like an eternity. They organised themselves quickly and with the aid of the information provided by Fury had formulated a viable plan of attack. It wasn't perfect or foolproof, something that made Tony and Bruce wince slightly but it was the best they could do with such a limited timeframe and next to no resources.

In that respect Pepper had been a fucking _godsend_.

Amidst dealing with the complete shit storm that the WSC had left in their wake with their attack on the tower, their subsequent proclamation of 'Tony Stark: traitor' _and_ running SI she had somehow managed to discreetly commandeer them some transport in such a way that it couldn't possibly be traced back to her. The look of impressed awe on Steve's face when the letter had arrived had been utterly priceless and was something the billionaire was going to remember for the _rest of his life,_ however short it may be. It also reminded of him of why he loved the woman so much, her ability to effortlessly anticipate and accommodate Tony's needs was nothing short of phenomenal; never mind her utterly devious and breathtaking mind.

So the six Avengers were crammed like sardines into the back of a medium sized motor home looking at each other with neutral expressions while Happy manned the wheel trying not to look like he was currently transporting America's most wanted man. The billionaire had been slightly dubious about Happy being their driver but as Pepper had explained Happy was just too obvious of a choice to be believable as a transporter and therefore was above reasonable suspicion. Just because it made logical sense didn't mean that Tony had to like it though, he loathed the thought of putting the man at risk no matter how blasé he was about their 'professional relationship'. Happy had been covering Tony's ass almost as long as Rhodey had, even more so than Rhodey when he thought about it Happy had literally seen it all by Tony's side.

The billionaire gave a small tired sigh, propped up against the back of the driver's seat and watched the rest of the team, they were all hiding the tension well but it was still palpable in the air. Steve and Clint were sat with Thor around the laughably small breakfast table, teaching him the basics of Gin Rummy and Bruce was sprawled across the couch with a copy of some weird meditation book open across his chest; snoring lightly. Nat had disappeared over an hour ago after commandeering the largest of the two bedrooms saying that she needed some 'girl time' which Tony thought meant she was cleaning the many instruments of demise she possessed and it was therefore probably not a good idea to disturb her if he wanted all his appendages intact.

"You okay Boss?" Happy asked lowly, eyes never leaving the road.

Tony sighed again not entirely sure how to answer; and he would _have_ to answer, Happy may not be the brightest person in his employ but he was like a dog with a bone, _tenacious._ It was something he truly liked and admired about the other man and it had saved his ass on more than one occasion as well as occasionally getting him into even more trouble, a few wild parties in Europe sprang immediately to mind.

"Yeah..." He answered lamely.

He didn't seem satisfied with the answer Tony could tell; Happy had never exactly been subtle when it came to showing his displeasure and now was no different. He let out a grunt of disapproval and the billionaire could see his knuckles tighten around the steering wheel.

"Try again Boss."

Tony's grin turned wry and slightly sardonic. "Okay so maybe I'm not _quite_ one hundred percent."

Happy snorted at that. "I think considering what I've heard about this whole clusterfuck then that is a god damned understatement."

The billionaire remained silent leaning his head against the head rest of the driver's seat and taking in slow measured breaths as he felt anxiety squeeze his heart.

"Happy..."

"Yeah Boss."

"I need to ask you a favour."

Again Tony could see the tension in the other man, it wasn't often he asked Happy for 'favours' and they were more often than not asked in times when Tony was either dying or about to do something colossally stupid. His long time friend and former chauffeur had learned to fear the word with good reason.

"Favour?" His voice was rightfully tinged with worry.

Tony licked his lips as he contemplated his next words, keeping his voice as low as possible so that only Happy could hear the next sentence.

"If... if something happens, to me, and y'know... I want you to take care of Pep for me. She's gonna need someone to have her back against all those corporate assholes and general assholes and..."

"Boss... Tony..." Happy cut across "I...Nothing is gonna happen, so you shouldn't worry..." He attempted to sound optimistic but it instead came across somewhat strained.

The billionaire let out a frustrated sigh and ran a hand through his hair. "Happy, I can't... I... Not this time... Just promise me...Okay."

There was a long moment of silence between them.

"Okay, you got it... I promise Boss... Not that I need to but you have my word."

Tony let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding and relaxed against the chair, he didn't know what was coming or what they'd be facing but he could at least take a small modicum of comfort knowing that he'd done the best he could considering the circumstances. His relief was short lived however as the motor home began to slow to a stop. Immediately every pair of eyes in the small living area darted up and Steve lunged forward worry sparkling in his blue eyes.

"What's wrong Mr. Hogan?"

Most people would have blushed and stammered at _Captain_ _America_ addressing them so respectfully but Happy had spent far too much time stuck in the vortex that was the life of Tony Stark to be cowed by such a thing. He spoke clearly and concisely when he answered.

"There's some kind of checkpoint up ahead..." He didn't sound happy.

Immediately everyone was on alert, eyes darting to one another with a sharp concern and Steve took control of the situation slipping into 'Captain America' mode.

"Right, Thor, Clint, Tony and I are going to hide out in the bedrooms. Our faces are too well known; people don't really know yours Bruce so I need you to keep them occupied and get rid of them as fast as possible."

The physicist looked a little nervous at the prospect of dealing with the situation but he nodded with a steely resolute look in his eye and a small quirk to his lips. Tony felt himself smile despite the potentially plan-shattering situation they had happened upon, he knew Bruce would handle this; the man was generally quiet and kept to himself but he'd been on the run for years before now he knew how to act and pretend to be someone he wasn't. He wouldn't have survived and evaded capture for so long otherwise.

The rest of them herded themselves into the bedrooms at the back of the motor home without comment, clearly trusting Steve's decision and Bruce's acting skills. Steve and Thor took the smaller of the two rooms, while Clint and Tony cautiously entered the one Natasha had commandeered earlier. She didn't look impressed.

"What is happening? Is it too much to ask for some alone time?" She demanded sharply.

Tony gawked while Clint merely rolled his eyes as he took in the chaos that was the double bed; it was covered in weapons and equipment.

"Where on _earth_ do you hide all that stuff when you go into a fight?" The billionaire asked slightly breathless.

Natasha's eyes narrowed " _Really_ not important now _Stark_. Clint what's the sitrep?"

Hawkeye's demeanour immediately changed the consummate professional replacing the light hearted joker Tony had come to admire and sort of like.

"Some kind of checkpoint looks to be only local law enforcement but well..."

"Yebat."* Widow cursed.

"Yeah" Clint continued "Steve and Thor are next door and Banner is running divert and dismiss."

There was the briefest flicker of a smile from Natasha and if Tony had looked a millisecond later he would have missed it. Intrigued he raised an eyebrow at the spy; who merely offered a blank expression and a quiet 'well this should be interesting' in response. The billionaire went to ask her to explain but a hand of his shoulder stopped him and he felt the shake of Clint's head through his hand.

"You'll see Shell head; you haven't done recon on Banner while he's been on the run. It's an experience... Just watch... Well listen and you'll see." There was definitely a smile in his voice.

"Fine." He huffed back and sat down on the bed carefully positioning himself between a pile of caltrops and those electric stun disks Natasha was so fond of. He could play their little game.

Bruce sat at the table mentally calculating all the variables and the best plan of action, it had been a while since he'd been in such a situation and he just hoped that his skills weren't _too_ rusty. He moved from the table and headed toward the small kitchen area to put his plan into action. He turned on the tap and cupped a handful of the cold water rubbing it through his hair in order to tame and slick the curls, next he raided the refrigerator for one of the leftover beers. Grimacing slightly he opened it and took a long mouthful making sure to swill and gargle it before spitting it out. For good measure he poured a little into his hands and applied it like aftershave swallowing down the gag reflex at the yeasty smell. Finally he opened a few of his shirt buttons, kicked off his shoes and grabbed the cheap pair of sunglasses Tony had demanded they buy at the last rest stop to 'protect his delicate retinas' (Bruce had been so relieved to see some of the old Tony back he done it without question) and replaced his reading glasses with them. Happy that he now looked and smelled like a slightly drunk/hung-over idiot he turned to their driver.

"Happy follow my lead okay."

"You got it Doc." He replied nodding, this wasn't his first rodeo.

The motor home crawled to a slow halt.

Bruce watched through the side window as an officer approached the vehicle and heard the sharp rapping on the side door. He took a deep breath before plastering a large slightly dopey grin on his face and pulling the door open.

"Officer..."The officer flashed his identification badge "...Fletcher" He said brightly, his voice slipping back into an accent he hadn't used in such a long, _long_ time that it almost hurt to think about. "What can I do ya' for?"

The officer... Fletcher look slightly taken aback by the enthusiastic greeting but after catching the faint whiff of beer he relaxed slightly. Bruce grinned mentally; the guy was already underestimating him.

"We're doing a spot check of all vehicles in the area Sir; we've had reports that a dangerous fugitive may be moving through the area."

Bruce furrowed his brow "Well that don't sound good, who's the guy?"

The officer handed Bruce a photo and even though he had a good idea of who was going to be it still made a lead weight drop in his stomach when he saw Tony's face flash in front of him.

"This is that Stark fella' isn't it, what did rich boy do crash too many parties? Seems the type."

The physicist drawled with wry humour, chuckling drunkenly at his own joke. In the bedroom Tony had to cover his mouth to stop himself from snorting slightly despite the severe situation, while both Natasha and Clint just smirked slightly and rolled his eyes.

Fletcher frowned slightly and took the photo back "Don't really have the details Sir, we've just been asked to search all the vehicles that pass through the area. So I need to see some identification and then need to search the vehicle."

In the back of his mind Bruce felt Hulk growl in frustration but he soothed him with the reassurance that he wasn't needed, not yet, the young officer was persistent and didn't look like he was going to back down from his duty but Bruce knew he could handle this situation. He plastered on a bright smile hoping he would still be able to de-rail the younger man and handed him the fake ID Tony had provided him with when he'd first moved in with him.

"So Mr.." Fletcher looked at the identification "Keppel*, what is the nature of your journey?"

Bruce rolled his eyes behind his sunglasses; Tony could be subtle and completely unsubtle at the same time. "Please call me Robby, Mr Keppel is my father, me and my friend here are heading down f'r our school reunion down in Washington County." He let a warm smile bleed through into his voice.

The officer looked down again at the identification and then back at Bruce the look in his face showing that he was clearly uncomfortable with this whole situation and thought it was a waste of time but knew he had to follow through. The physicist sighed internally, why was nothing _ever_ easy? He spoke again to recapture Fletcher's attention before he began to over think things and complicated the matter further.

"Well there ain't much here not really..." Bruce positioned himself so that the officer could see through the door but not in a way that would allow him access "See? Just me and a few buddies."

Fletcher looked slightly flummoxed clearly not entirely sure whether this was considered enough to make his superiors happy or not and Bruce mentally prayed that it was, while still maintaining his casual demeanour; not giving away a flicker of worry even though he felt it.

In the bedroom Tony listened through the door with a slight look of shock on his face. If he hadn't know for a fact that it _was_ Bruce out there he would have sworn blind that it was an entirely different person. His demeanour had completely changed and there was a confidence in his voice that the billionaire had never heard before, it was... startling, the difference it made. The man out there was not the reserved, quiet person with authority issues he had come to know and it made Tony's head spin and stomach churn. Was this how Bruce would have been had he not had his accident? Or was this an act of necessity of something to try and just make life that little easier?

It left a slightly bitter taste on Tony's tongue but he was no less in awe of it.

Sitting on the bed both Natasha and Clint were sat on the bed smirking slightly but their faces held a modicum of feigned sympathy. It really was too fun to be able to catch Stark out of his element and demoted to the realms of cluelessness every once in a while.

"Might wanna pick your jaw up Stark." Hawkeye murmured quietly, sharp eyes never leaving Tony's.

The billionaire shut his mouth immediately, shot a half hearted glare at Clint and went back to listening to the conversation, pointedly ignoring the two super spies sat smugly behind them. Bruce practically had the officer eating out of his hand and it made Tony wonder that if Bruce could _be_ this manipulative then why the shit _wasn't_ he more often? Hell the billionaire knew he could sweet talk people into doing what he wanted but the physicist? He was talking people into _liking_ him and that was an entirely different ball game one to which Tony had no clue of the rules.

It finally seemed as if Fletcher was going to relent and leave them in peace when a second, older and much gruffer voice entered the conversation accompanied the harsh sound of a blunt object coming into contact with the side of the motor home, dangerously close to where Bruce was standing. Even from his perch in the bedroom Tony felt himself jump.

"What's takin' so long greenhorn? All ya' had to do was search the van surely even you can do that simple task." He barked as he swung the police baton back into its holder.

Bruce took an instant dislike to the older man, reminded far too keenly of another older man of authority.

"We were just finishing our business _Officer_." He tried to keep the disdain from his voice but Bruce was fairly certain a little had seeped through.

The newcomer raised an eyebrow at Bruce and tilted his hat slightly in a gesture of authority and in that second the physicist knew they were in trouble. He may have been able to convince Fletcher not to come aboard but trying that with this sour face old git who clearly had an authority complex shoved so far his ass it _had_ to be painful was just not going to fly here.

"Mmm-hmmm." The officer hummed, sucking his lip slightly in a menacing manner.

Beside him Fletcher blanched slightly and wilted under the intimidating man's presence and turned an apologetic gaze up at Bruce. The physicist offered a small smile in return; while he didn't actively like the police Fletcher had seemed to be a genuine guy. This new intruder however seemed like a total ass.

"Yes Officer Brunswick, we were just finishing up." Fletcher added an almost pleading look on his face.

"Mmm-hmmm." Brunswick snarked "Did you check the inside?"

Fletcher paled slightly and Bruce mentally cursed.

"Uhm... No Sir. There didn't seem to be any need." He replied somewhat timidly not daring to look either man in the eye.

Back in the bedroom Tony could feel his heart rate pitch slightly, they were _so_ _busted_. Behind him he could hear his fellow team-mates shuffling around trying to remain quiet, admittedly curious he turned around to see just what the hell they were up to and ended up with an eyeful of Natasha's naked back. The billionaire just about managed to muffle the squeak that escaped his mouth and shot a glare at the smirking Hawkeye.

"Oh stop being such a baby Stark; you'd think you'd never seen a naked woman before." He teased as Widow shot out a hand and cuffed him around the head.

"Clint knock it off, I'm trying to think."

Tony tried not to feel smug and for once decided that not spewing the thought that had just crossed his mind was probably a good thing instead he asked.

"What are you doing?"

Natasha turned to him, a long towel wound around her body and shot Tony a fleeting smirk before her face turned serious.

"Improvising." She replied, none to gently pushing Tony out of the way and heading out of the bedroom door.

Outside the bedroom Bruce could feel himself starting to flounder, he had tried every tactic he could think of to dissuade Brunswick but the old bastard was stubborn and would not back down; digging his heels if further with every word the physicist said.

"Robby, darlin' what's taking so long?" Natasha's accent was a flawless mimicry of Bruce's own

A pair of cool hands wound themselves around Bruce's waist and it took every ounce of his control not to jump in surprise. He turned his head slightly and caught sight of Natasha's cold green eyes as she laid her chin on his shoulder, she had angled her body so that her towel covered curves were in plain sight of the two police officers and both of them were apparently not above abject staring. The physicist bit the inside of his cheek to stop the snort of laughter at the obvious tactic but if he was perfectly honest he'd never been happier to see the Widow. Well he _would_ be happier if she didn't have a grip on his hips so tight it could probably crush bone but he pushed his discomfort aside and let a slow, lazy smile cross his face.

"Hey babe, just talking to the officers here."

Natasha smiled warmly at the two men before kissing Bruce on the cheek a looked filled with hidden promises that made both officers flush slightly plastered across her face.

"Well don't keep me waiting too long darlin' you know how I don't like to be kept waitin'..."

And without another word she sauntered back off toward the bedroom, hips swaying in an exaggerated fashion leaving no illusions as to _what_ she was 'waiting' for. Brunswick whistled quietly under his breath eyes not leaving Natasha's swinging backside, after she slipped out of sight he turned his attention back to Bruce jaw slightly agape.

"Damn that's a woman you got their friend."

Bruce gave a chuckle knowing just untrue that actually was but not wishing to undo the work Natasha had put in place he twitched his lips upward, raised his sunglasses and winked.

"You got no idea friend." He answered truthfully.

"Bet she's a real animal in the sack." Brunswick said with a heated tone and a look of undisguised lust on his face.

The physicist felt his stomach twist in disgust but he kept his expression casual and prayed that Natasha would forgive him later.

"That's one way 'o putting it but like she said, she don't like to be kept waiting."

Brunswick smirked and the expression on his face made Bruce's stomach twist even more violently, the man was an honest to god letch and he felt insulted on the Widow's behalf. Hell even the other guy felt insulted; if the grumbles in the back of his mind were anything to go by. Considering his and Natasha's somewhat chequered past that was truly a testament to how disgusting they both found the man. Understandably oblivious to the physicist's inner workings however the officer continued to smirk while Fletcher rolled his eyes; at Brunswick in disgust and Bruce in amazement at apparently landing someone like Natasha.

If only he knew the truth.

"Well Greenhorn let's not keep the lady waiting any longer, it ain't gentlemanly." He tipped his hat to Bruce before stalking away.

Fletcher lingered a moment longer before offering Bruce a terse smile and quiet farewell before following his superior officer back toward the checkpoint. The physicist let the door of the motor home close with a quiet click and rested his head against it, taking in a slow steady breath. That had been close, _too close_. If it hadn't been for Natasha's intervention he dreaded to think how that situation would have turned out.

Happy slowly drove through the checkpoint and quickly out of sight of the officers before the rest of the Avengers deigned to emerge from hiding. Tony blustered in like a whirlwind and immediately threw an arm around Bruce's shoulders a slightly manic grin on his face.

"Forget the Nobel, get this man an Oscar because I honestly didn't recognize you..."

The physicist ducked his head but you could just make out the slight red tinge to his ears.

"Plus you got to schmooze with the notorious Black Widow and keep your manhood intact, that deserves an award all of it's own."

Natasha gave the billionaire a quick smack around the head while the rest of the team just shook their heads in amused exasperation. He grumbled slightly but gave them all a smug smirk, a gesture they all immediately saw straight through; they had known him long enough to see the strained edge to the smirk.

"Tony, please don't talk about my 'manhood' again unless you want to give the Other Guy ideas." The comment was as dry as the desert.

There was a brief moment of disbelieving silence before Tony burst into laughter, genuine, unforced laughter; the like they hadn't heard from him in quite some time.

"Jesus Banner..." He turned to the rest of them "And this is why Bruce is my favourite."

The mirth was short lived however as the motor home once again began to slow down as the terrain began to roughen. They were getting close, Tony could feel that sense of certainty running through his body like a rush of adrenaline and it made his fingers thrum with anticipation. He wasn't the only affected, Clint was a taught as his bow string, Thor and Natasha looked resigned but determined and Steve... Steve looked more serious than Tony had ever seen him and considering the shit they'd all been through that was saying something. For the briefest of moments their eyes met and the raw sadness in the Captain's gaze nearly took Tony's breath away.

He'd forgotten he wasn't the only one with something to lose here.

But the moment passed and it was suddenly back to business, Steve's face betraying nothing.

"Avengers. Suit up."

Nobody argued.

~End Chapter Twenty Three.~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Keppel is a shade of green.... Tony can be _really_ subtle sometimes *Rolls eyes*
> 
> *Yebat or ебать literally means fuck


	24. Chapter Twenty-Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which The Avengers launch their assault, Tony is sneaky and General Ross shows up and is once again a dick.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Oh holy crap a relatively speedy update... Be still my beating heart! Thanks to everyone still reading/reviewing/faving. You guys are seriously ALL KINDS OF AWESOME!
> 
> I kinda want to say something, more of a promise than anything else because I read something recently (I won't say where, I don't name and shame) and it made me _REALLY angry_. I will, never, ever, EVER hold stories ransom for reviews. I write because I enjoy it not because I want recognition. (Although recognition is nice.)
> 
> So yeah, this story is my baby and I will try my hardest to finish it regardless if anyone is still reading.
> 
> I loves all yo' faces.

Daddy Dearest

Chapter Twenty-Four

It was a solemn group of individuals that stared down at the hillside at the seemingly abandoned factory, the faint puff of toxic smoke and the hum of electrics leading anyone to believe otherwise. They had travelled the last few miles or so on foot after leaving Happy at the stop off point somewhere close to Harmonie, West Virginia. The Avengers were literally stranded in the middle of nowhere and normally they would have all been in awe of the majestic beauty around them but it seemed tainted by the knowledge of what they were about to do.

"Everyone know what they have to do?" Steve asked solemnly, pulling down his cowl.

"Sure thing Cap." The electronic voice of Iron Man replied, the whine of the repulsors echoing through the empty air.

The rest of the team nodded in agreement their faces set in resignation and determination. Bruce absently began unbuttoning his shirt; wanting at least some form of clothing available to him once he reverted back from the Hulk. He flashed Tony a small grin and handed the article to Clint for storage, before closing his eyes and letting the transformation take over. Once it had ended the Hulk towered over them a feral, toothy smile on his broad face and green eyes darting between the hovering armour and the target.

"Smash?" He asked simply, even though he appeared to already know the answer if the flex of the green fists were any indication.

Iron Man parted his shoulder reassuringly. "Fuck yeah Jellybean, _smash!_ " He snarled venomously as the grip on the giant green shoulder tightened.

Hulk looked at Tony and then at Steve who gave a terse little nod of his head. The goliath's smile widened slightly, a hint of darkness tingeing the edges.

Hulk didn't _need_ to told twice.

He leapt into battle.

—*—

When the Hulk landed in the centre of the facility and _roared_ the whole factory erupted into chaos as the defence AI sprang into action like an overzealous dog. Overhead the Iron Man armour darted around like a demented dragonfly, repulsors flaring and missiles erupting from every orifice causing explosions and widespread destruction. Hulk grinned watching the 'Metal Man' smash as he himself pummelled a gun turret that had emerged from one of the many metallic surfaces. In the distance he could see the rest of the team filtering in through the opening they had created, weapons drawn and already adding to the chaos.

The giant grinned sweeping his arm to send a group of body armour clad mercenaries flying into a nearby wall as the distinct thud of vibranium hitting something solid echoed through the air before ricocheting back to its owner. Steve caught the shield with a deft, practiced hand and swung it around taking out another goon that had tried to sneak up on him. His face was grim as he felt the crunch of the man's skull reverberate through his arm enough to incapacitate but not permanently harm. The goon crumpled in a heap at his feet.

Another roar sounded.

"Think Hulk might be enjoying himself." Clint noted wryly, letting loose a volley of explosive arrows with silent, deadly accuracy.

Beside him Natasha rolled her eyes as she moved to flank Steve, taking out another mechanized turret with her widows' bite and watching with cool detachment as the electricity danced over the metal surface. To her right she could see another wave of mercenaries taking position and taking aim at Iron Man with what looked like some kind of electronic disruptor. With a twist of her lips and a practiced flick of her wrists she let fly a couple of her stun disks instantly incapacitating them.

The armour darted past with a mock salute "Thanks for the save Nattie-pie."

Widow responded by flicking him an obscene hand gesture even as she flung a throwing knife with deadly accuracy, the sharp point embedding itself in the shoulder of another grunt throwing his aim off. Iron Man laughed somewhat maniacally, the electronic synthesizer making the noise sound even more sinister and he landed with an almighty thud sending out a shockwave that knocked another cluster of guards of their feet.

"Intruders. This is your first and last warning to stand down and surrender..." The viciously polite voice of the defence AI intoned "... After which the use of lethal force will be authorised."

Clint snorted over the comms "So what's this then, the company picnic?"

"Hawkeye focus!" Cap snapped sharply.

"It's fine Cap, stop being such a Team Mo..."

Clint's comment was cut short and the sudden silence was ominous.

"Hawkeye!" Natasha's voice was clipped, a sure sign she was concerned.

There was a quiet groan and a huff of air down the line "I'm fine, stupid fucking laser grids... Stark, I swear when this is over I am jamming a god damned arrow in your knee."

The tinny, electronic laugh sounded again "Can't blame me for being good at what I do Robin Hood..." The words were slightly bitter and laced with sarcasm.

"Watch me." The archer shot back tartly.

" _Avengers_." Growled Captain America, the levity of his voice dampening the usual mid-battle banter

There was a huff of assent from the rest of the team as they turned their focus back onto the fight. The AI had not been joking when it had said that it would be using lethal force, the sudden increase in armaments, personnel and offensive force catching the team slightly off kilter. The only Avenger not perturbed was the Hulk, who was having far too much fun smashing the living daylights out of anything within range. This mostly consisted of the gun turrets bigger brothers as the mercenaries had quickly decided that engaging the Hulk in open combat was a _bad idea_.

Iron Man had once again taken to the air, sniping the smaller turrets with precision repulsor blasts and laying covering fire for the rest of the team. He was nothing but a deadly red and gold blur in the winding bowels of the ceiling scaffolding, causing chaos for the enemy forces.

"Iron Man... Your six o'clock!"

Widow's warning came a fraction of a second too late; just as the armour turned mid-air it was hit by another localised EMP blast like the assault on the tower and it plummeted to the ground like a lead weight, hitting the floor with a crunch as the momentum sent it skidding along the ground with and ear shattering screech. The remaining mercenaries were on the downed hero in an instant a mixture of automatic, EMP and plasma rifles trained on the still form.

"Get that faceplate off..." One of the men ordered, clearly the leader "... I don't trust this fucker as far as I can throw him and I want a kill shot should I need to take it."

A few of the men looked sceptical at the statement, sceptical that one soldier could take down Iron Man but they were clearly not brave enough to voice their thoughts. Hesitantly one of the mercenaries stepped forward gun pointed with a steady hand as he cautiously felt around the faceplate for the release catch. After a few moments of careful probing the man found a depression near where the ears should be and pushed gently, there was a hiss of hydraulics releasing and the slightly battered faceplate slid back to reveal... _nothing_.

"What the _fuck_." The leader breathed, aghast.

"The fuck indeed..." Tony's voice, sounding amused echoed from the speakers. " _Surprise_ motherfuckers."

There was a moment of silence, so deep you would have heard a pin drop. Then the previously dark arc reactor flared back into life, humming quietly, getting bright and white hot rapidly. The smarter of the mercenaries figured out what was about to happen far _, far_ too late for their shouts of 'Get back!' to be effective; while the stupider among them just gawked in confusion as the armour began to judder slightly as the arc reactor overloaded itself to critical mass.

"See you in hell ass-clowns."

The world erupted into white.

*—*

Tony grinned as he saw the pillar of white erupt from the far side of the compound and absent-mindedly began removing the visor that had connected him remotely to the suit. Thor slowed slightly, turning his head to raise an eyebrow at the billionaire who was drapes across his shoulder in an awkward fireman's carry.

"That aurora, it is your doing friend Anthony?"

Tony grinned broadly, with more teeth than was strictly necessary "Sure is Fabio. Those bastards just learned _why_ you don't fuck with Tony _fucking_ Stark."

The Asgardian mirrored his grin "Your vengeance was swift my friend; yet somehow I know that it has not been sated fully."

"Not. Even. Close. Thanks for the lift by the way...You can let me down now though, much as I enjoy being swept off my feet there is a time and a place for it."

Thor let out a quiet laugh, at least for Thor and lowered Tony to the ground. He took a quick moment to regain his balance before he finished stripping off the rest of the armours remote receptors and tossing them aside. Without the arc reactor to power them they were nothing more than glorified scrap and the billionaire felt no qualms about leaving them behind for the bottom feeders, provided they'd had a nice talk with the heavy end of Mjolnir first.

"I do not doubt it friend Anthony." Thor replied a thread of mischief more suited to his brother rippling through his voice.

Finally stripped of the more cumbersome tech the billionaire started forward eyes glued to the small scanner that he had developed in the basement lab what now seemed like aeons ago. The Asgardian followed close on his heels bringing up the rear, bright eyes scanning the quiet corridors with a seasoned warriors gaze. He felt a little disquieted by the complete silence surrounding them, the lack of noise an ominous itch in the back of his mind.

It felt... _off_ somehow _._

Tony didn't pay any heed to his teammate, his jaw clenched tight as he strode forward through the labyrinthine maze of corridors. The make shift scanner was held out in front of him beeping softly and more insistently with each passing minute and that beep began to mirror his own heartbeat. A steady thrum of ' _Where is he? Where is he?'_ in sync with the small device. All he could think about was finding Howard and blowing this place to kingdom come to punish those for taking what was _his;_ because hewas _Tony_ _ **fucking**_ _Stark_ and he didn't take too kindly to that shit.

They reached what looked like an access shaft leading down to the lower levels and the billionaire wasted no time in hacking the electronic lock, eyes shining with a manic gleam as the lock depressed, hissed quietly and then slid open. He was about to take his first step onto the stairwell when Thor placed a broad hand on his shoulder halting him in his tracks.

Tony reared around like a wounded animal and the Asgardian held up his free hand placatingly in a gesture of surrender.

"Steady Man of Iron..." Because Thor was under no delusions that _that_ was whom he was addressing now, the battle hardened warrior usually so carefully hidden under Tony's flippant façade. The man that had fought his way out of the desert with blood and fire and hate. "... I do not like this; it is too quiet as you Midgardians would say."

The billionaire settled himself, focusing on the hand on his shoulder and not the red tinged rage that was causing his vision to blur at the edges.

"You think it's a trap?" He asked bluntly.

"Aye." Thor nodded in return his face suddenly looking so, so much older and more like the ancient deity Tony had read stories of when he was young.

"Then lets spring it, I'm tired of all this pussy footing bullshit."

The other man looked like he wanted to argue but was silenced by Tony's next words, murmured quietly under his breath so that only Thor would be able to hear them.

"It's not as if they have anything that can keep both of us down Fabio, anything else we can deal with."

He felt a small rush of pride at Tony's obvious faith in his abilities and knew that admitting to such a thing was something the Midgardian found difficult to do. It made his heart swell ever so slightly. And as much as he felt unnerved by the situation he also had to grudgingly admit that the engineer was right, there was very little on this world that could truly harm him. Excluding the blunt, brute force of the Hulk the closest anyone had come was Tony himself with his mechanised wonder and as he had seen from the many news statements and other media the rest of the world was very, _very_ behind Anthony Stark... At least for the most part.

Hesitantly, _oh_ , _so_ hesitantly Thor gave a small nod and removed his hand from Tony's shoulder "As you wish Man of Iron. But we should remain vigilant none the less."

The billionaire couldn't really argue with that, it never hurt to remain aware; too little of that in the past had cost him far, far too much and even years later the wounds still ached when prodded. Tony shook his head free of the suffocating thoughts, now was _not_ the time for that particular nostalgia driven pity party. Focused once again he flashed Thor one of his brightest, most vicious grins , a grin the Asgardian mirrored before stepping forward onto the gloomy stairwell.

The journey downwards was for the most part uneventful, they met no resistance from either the hired mercenaries nor the defence AI and if anything it made the ball of unease curl tighter in both Thor and Tony's stomachs. Over head the emergency lighting flickered, a sure sign that the rest of the Avengers were doing fulfilling their roles beautifully and the billionaire couldn't quite suppress the ruthless smile at the thought of the chaos the rest of the gang were causing. He didn't feel the slightest shred of sympathy for _any_ of the fuck-wits that were standing in the Avengers way, they had chosen their side and now they had to lay with it.

Finally the seemingly unending spiral of stairs seem to come to an end and the pair were faced with a long narrow corridor that lead into what appeared to be a science station cum holding area. Both Thor and the billionaire eyed the corridor warily. If there was to be an ambush this was the perfect place to do so an enclosed bottleneck with no additional entrance or exits points; it was a blatant taunt and both of them knew it.

"Ready for this Point Break?" Tony asked casually, but there was an underlying hint of concern.

The Asgardian nodded hefting Mjolnir from where it had been hanging on his belt and readying himself for whatever they were about to face.

"Aye friend, Stay close and I shall keep you from harm."

Tony snorted "That's if you can keep up..." And he took off at a full sprint.

Thor didn't even get the chance to roll his eyes at the action but quickly spurred into action following the speeding man down the long corridor; senses poised and ready for an attack. They made it about halfway before the grinding sound of a heavy door closing over reached their ears in stereo, both exits had been blocked.

They were trapped.

"Fuck!" Tony swore skidding to a halt, Thor close on his heels.

The Asgardian didn't look impressed and held the metal war-hammer out in front of him ready to launch an attack.

"Don't use lightning!" The billionaire snapped quickly, distinctly aware of the _metal_ surroundings and while _Thor_ maybe be pretty much lightning proof _he_ wasn't afforded the same luxury without the suit.

"I did not intend to my friend."

The demi-god replied and before Tony knew what had happened he felt the cool rush of displaced air as something large and _heavy_ soared past his head down toward the far end of the corridor. The billionaire watched as Mjolnir flew at a break neck pace down the remaining stretch of corridor and collided with a truly thunderous clang on the thick metal door. The door shuddered violently but remained firm and unyielding leading Tony to a single conclusion as to its make-up.

Adamantium, fucking _marvellous._

He watched as Mjolnir flew back toward them and then all of a sudden just fell out of the air, landing with a bone-jarring crash on the floor. Tony looked confused for a moment and then spun around about to ask Thor 'What the actual hell?'

He froze.

Thor was lying prone on the floor clawing at his throat; a desperate look in his wide blue eyes as he gasped and wheezed like a dying fish trapped out of water. Tony was pretty sure that it would be a mental image that would haunt his dreams, provided he made it out of this alive.

The billionaire sniffed the air tentatively.

Gas.

Those cowardly _fucking_ fucks.

His brain was just about to ask the question of 'why isn't this shit affecting me?' When a voice, an obnoxious familiar voice echoed over the intercom.

"I see you friend isn't too keen on our latest threat management measures Mr. Stark. Harmless to humans... Not so much to anything less than Human."

Tony swore in every language he knew both out loud and in the comforts of his own brain. He'd _known_ Ross was involved, he just hadn't expected him to be _here_.

"Stop it Ross! You're fucking killing him."

The billionaire could _hear_ the sadistic smile over the speakers and it made his vision swim with red.

"I believe that's the point Mr. Stark but I guess you're lucky once again. My orders are to incapacitate not kill, although I have to admit the look on the green lummox's face when he suddenly found himself unable to take the smallest breath was quite satisfying."

He's baiting Tony, Tony _knows_ this but the mental image of Hulk floundering, breathless and helpless causes the coldest fury he has ever felt to knot in the pit of his stomach. He is going to _murder_ Ross, slowly, painfully, in _every,_ _single_ way the man fears and no-one, _no fucking one_ will have an ounce of proof he's responsible because he is Tony _fucking_ Stark and this complete asshat fuckwit of a General _needs to learn you_ _ **do**_ _ **not fuck with his shit or hurt those he considers his.**_ But for the moment he has more pressing matters at hand than the impending bout of homicide he is planning on committing because that alone is enough of an incentive to survive this, he needs to help Thor and get Ross to stop pumping whatever that shit is into the corridor.

"Stop Ross. I'll do what you want."

There is a laugh, low, cold and it makes Tony want to vomit. "I always knew you were a smart man _somewhere_ beneath all that arrogance Stark. You know what you need to do."

The billionaire grimaces "Stop whatever this shit is first and I'll do it."

The laugh this time is a little more steely "I think not, I know how flippant you can be."

Tony bares his teeth like an animal. Ross is a fucking sadistic bastard he was going to make him _grovel_ like a whipped dog for it. If it had been _any_ other circumstance, if he'd been _alone_ he would have played the verbal run around all day but there was someone else on the line here and he couldn't risk that.

He raised his hands slowly placed them behind his head.

"Fine!"

"I want you to say it Stark."

The billionaire bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from actually saying what he wanted to and in a low, defeated tone murmured.

"I surrender."

"I didn't quite catch that I'm afraid." Ross sounds positively gleeful.

Tony balks and bites down again this time drawing blood. Ross is taking far too much pleasure in this and it is taking every single bit of Tony's restraint not to just flip the guy off. His eyes dart back to Thor who is laying silent, unmoving save for the occasional twitch on the floor and it's enough to quell the tide of emotions.

"I surrender! I surrender you sick fuck! Now stop the fucking gas!" He screeches finger tips digging into the back of his skull almost painfully hard.

"Now, see, that wasn't so hard, was it."

The faint hissing noise that Tony assumed was the gas abruptly stopped and the billionaire felt himself sag with relief, for the briefest of horrifying moments he thought that Ross wouldn't stop. He didn't need another death on his conscience.

The far door slid open and a platoon filtered in, weapons trained on Tony. He could see the mistrust written clear across their faces and he felt himself smirk for a moment, sometimes it was nice to have a _reputation_ even if it was for being unpredictable. They slowly edged forward and Tony turned around exposing his back in a gesture of compliant surrender, it pained him so much to do it but he couldn't risk Ross turning whatever that gas was back on and actually killing Thor instead of incapacitating him, although looking at the Asgardian now it already looked as if the man was on the brink of death. Rough hands seized his arms and forced them down into a pair of handcuffs, and then Tony was abruptly spun around and found himself face to face with General Ross.

Tony couldn't help himself, he reacted.

And spat full in the mans face.

Ross wiped the spittle from his face with a look of utter disgust plastered across it.

The billionaire's satisfaction was only short lived however as a brutal fist connected with his face, not in the right position to knock him out but enough to make his jaw sting like a _bitch_ and make him seriously think about doing something like that again. He mentally shrugged; he'd do it a thousand times over the physical pain was worth every inch of the satisfaction it had given him

"Mr. Stark." Ross cooed all ruthless efficiency, a thin veneer over the bubbling hate and disgust just beneath the surface.

" _Ross._ " Tony answered, purposefully not adding the man's rank. This earned him a punch to the gut and he wheezed slightly.

The General seemed unperturbed by the rough treatment and waved a hand airily.

"See this is your problem Stark, all of your problems. You lack discipline, conviction."

Tony grinned at him, teeth glistening with blood. "This will blow up in your face Ross and like the last time I _will_ be there to tell you I told you so*."

He was honestly surprised at the strength of the punch when Ross's bony knuckles connected with his lower jaw and his vision faded into darkness.

~End Chapter 24~

*This is a reference to the post movie credits scene for 'The Incredible Hulk' film.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Dodges the sharp pointy things thrown at my head* Thanks for reading, see you next chapter. *Laughs evilly*


	25. Chapter Twenty-Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tony and Howard are reunited and things go from bad to worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Holy hell, I got an update done. Oh man I'm so very close to finishing this now I can taste it. Thank you so, SO much to everyone who has read/reviewed/fav'd my little story. You guys are awesome!
> 
> (And please continue to do so because it makes me REALLY HAPPY.)

Daddy Dearest.

Chapter 25

When Tony regained consciousness it was to a pounding in his skull that made even his worst hangovers seem trivial in comparison. Literally _everything_ hurt and he assumed that meant Ross and his cronies had been less than gentle with him after he'd lost consciousness. He was honestly not surprised by that. The General had already proved himself a more than capable asshole why should the billionaire expect special, or hell even _fair_ treatment?

Slowly, ever so slowly he opened his eyes and instantly had to shut them against the bright fluorescent light reflecting off the metal of the room, holding cell, whatever this fucking place was. It was bright, too damn bright and the billionaire forced down the wave of nausea it induced, now would not be the best time to toss his cookies. He took a deep breath, somewhat hampered by the fact his face was pressed into the floor and after a few minutes Tony tried again to open his eyes. This time the pain wasn't nearly as intense, more a dull thud than someone stabbing him in the brain with an ice pick and he was able to keep them open in a bleary eyed squint.

"So you're awake at last."

The voice was slightly muffled but Tony recognised it instantly, Howard. With far more effort than he felt needed the billionaire managed to rock on to his side, wincing slightly as the handcuffs dug into his wrists under his body weight. He let out a grunt as he forced his stiff limbs to work and manoeuvre his body into a kneeling position; it was difficult without the use of his arms but he managed it, if not in an ungainly fashion.

He was alone in the cell and for a moment Tony was confused, where had Howard's voice come from? He twisted his head around and saw that one of the walls, the wall connected to the adjoining cell was some kind of transparent material and sat on the other side back to Tony was the man in question.

"Just about..." Tony's voice came out raspy and raw.

The older man turned his head and even from where Tony was kneeling he could see that Howard looked terrible, his skin was pale and drawn, eyes bloodshot.

"You look like shit..."

Howard narrowed his eyes as if to say 'you're one to talk' and remained silent for a moment before answering.

"You don't look much better Anthony."

Tony let out a small snort of laughter and began shuffling toward the glass. It was awkward and uncomfortable but he managed to make it and slumped against the glass, which actually wasn't glass but some kind of transparent aluminium.

"Why did you come here?" Howard's voice was cool and steely.

The billionaire thought about his answer for a second, he was tempted, _sorely_ tempted to just brush it off and act his usual obnoxious self but at this point he decided what the fuck was the point. Howard had to have known the reason he'd come, he just wanted Tony to say it.

"You know why."

The older man's face fell slightly, looking grey and tired and he rubbed a hand across his stubbled jaw in exasperation or frustration Tony honestly couldn't tell.

"You shouldn't have come."

This time Tony did laugh although it came out bitter sounding.

"Not as if I had anywhere else to go old man and besides there were some people here who needed a spanking."

Howard rose an eyebrow again, that single motion saying far more than words ever could and Tony felt his stomach drop. He'd disappointed him, _again_. Even now it was still a bitter pill to swallow. They fell into stubborn, unyielding silence which was fucking _fine_ by Tony, he didn't want to talk to the old fart anyway instead he should be focusing on how to get the hell out of here. His prison was a simple cuboid shaped cell with a heavy metal door at one end. The billionaire glared at the door, which wasn't electronically locked just barred shut with a lock, a big lock, a lock that didn't appear to be made of the same alloy the rest of the cell was made of. Tony wanted to shudder in revulsion at the insult of that, he built this place to be progressive and modern not stuck in the fucking Stone Age. What he needed right now was brute strength and a little bit of ingenuity.

"Fuck I wish Thor was here." He sighed softly.

"Thor?" Came Howard's confused voice "That big blond man they brought in with you?"

Tony turned a rueful smile on his face.

"Yeah that guy... Turns out, Norse mythology not so much mythology and right now I could do with his brute strength and magic mumbo jumbo."

Howard looked aghast and the younger Stark couldn't help but feel a little smug. It wasn't every day you managed to put that look on Howard Starks face. Tony held on to that happy feeling as long as he could, mentally sniggering at the image of himself as Peter Pan, because in a minute he was going to _really_ need it.

"Yeah... He would have been able to break these cuffs for me no problem... as it is..." He continued to ramble, starting to shift and twist his arms behind his back a grimace on his face.

This was _really_ going to hurt.

He maneuverer his left hands into position and with a sharp, violent pull Tony yanked his hand through the cuff. There was a sickening crunch as the bones in his hands and fingers shattered and warped allowing the appendage to slip through. The billionaire bit back the shriek of pain, almost biting right through his lip in the process and tried (rather unsuccessfully) to not think about the damage he had just inflicted on his person. Gingerly he looked down at the mangled limb and winced slightly, cradling it close to his chest as he got to his feet and walked or rather staggered to the door.

He grinned weakly, thanking the stupidity of the soldiers; they hadn't even searched him properly for fucks sake apparently more concerned with getting the Norse god into containment than conducting a full cavity search. Like Tony cared, it meant that he now had a way out of this shithole. He kicked off sneaker and pulled out the inner sole revealing a small set of lock picks. It was going to be awkward as hell but he'd pulled off bigger upsets before now and he intended to continue that tradition.

He slipped one of the picks into the lock, using his mouth to keep it steady and using his good hand inserted the second pick into the lower section of the lock. It was difficult; not having both hands to feel the shifting of springs in the lock was a complete pain in the ass but Natasha had been _thorough_ when she'd taught him how to do this.

Finally he heard the lock click and he pushed against the door, resisting the urge to whoop in victory when it swung outwards.

He was fucking _awesome_.

He peeked out into the corridor and was relieved to see that there were no guards posted; he couldn't help the flash of annoyance at that but there were more important things to worry about right now. Tony moved to the door of Howard's cell and brandished the lock picks once making short work of the lock this time since he'd already done it once. He pulled open the door, a smirk on his lips.

"Anyone call for room service?"

Howard rolled his eyes and walked out of the door not quite ignoring Tony but really acknowledging his presence either.

"How do we get out of here?" He asked.

That was gratitude for you, Tony really should have known better than that. He shrugged in answer to the question Howard had posed.

"Well first we need to find the control room and break open the electronic locks and pilfer our way through their files for proof. Then we bust Thor out and get the fuck out of here."

The older man gave him a slightly sceptical look but didn't argue with Tony's assessment of the situation, which the billionaire assumed meant he agreed with him. Tony ran a hand through his hair before pushing away from the wall and starting down the corridor toward the small cluster of rooms, hoping that one of them was the control room. Howard followed him a look of unease on his face.

"Something isn't right..." He stated bluntly "Where have all the guards gone?"

"Probably dealing with the rest of the Avengers..."

Tony replied smugly because he hadn't believed Ross for a fucking second. He and Thor had been cornered in the corridor; the rest of the team had had the whole compound to use as their playground. There was _no_ _way_ Ross and his minions had taken them down, no way in all the seven hells. The other man however didn't look convinced despite Tony's insistence, still following hot on the billionaire's heels.

They reached the doors and Tony tried the doors. They opened; much to his complete surprise, the first two into what looked file rooms the third into a small control room and the billionaire grinned.

"Bingo." He whistled stepping inside.

The walls of the room were covered in monitors some displaying live CCTV footage while the others showed steady streams of data and information, which kicked Tony's curiosity into overdrive. For the moment however he focused on the CCTV and Tony felt his blood run cold as his jaw clenched with fury.

Dark eyes zeroed in on what appeared to be another complex of holding cells, each one holding one of his teammates strapped to a specimens table like a slab of meat. Various drips and medical instruments protruded from their limbs and even through the shitty cameras Tony could see that their skin was ashen and clammy. Fuck, Ross _hadn_ 't been lying and that left a cold, bitter taste in Tony's mouth and pure fury burning through his veins.

Someone was going to pay dearly for this, with _blood_.

"Anthony..."

Tony ignored Howard, his teeth grinding together as he tried to get a handle on his temper. If he wanted to help the others he needed to remain calm and not go flying off half-cocked, he could practically hear his mental Pepper snorting at that thought.

"Anthony..."

The billionaire continued to watch the footage something cold and unsettling lodging itself in his gut, where _had_ all the soldiers gone? Even incapacitated it wasn't a wise idea to leave a group of prisoners unattended, especially a group as dangerous as the Avengers, it was just _asking_ for trouble. Something was going on here, something Tony couldn't quite see and it made him feel slightly sick with anxiety.

" _ **Anthony…**_ "

Tony rounded on the elder Stark his teeth bared in a snarl. Honestly what the hell was Howard's problem?

"What!?" He barked out harshly.

There was a moment of dead silence as Tony followed Howard's gaze.

When he caught sight of what had captured the man's attention the irritation drained from instantly. Suddenly the complete abandonment of the compound made a whole _world_ of sense and Tony felt the bottom fall out of his stomach. Howard's steely eyes were fixed on a screen displaying energy output readings, _nuclear_ energy output readings, readings that were quickly climbing into dangerous fucking levels, At the rate they were climbing they probably had around thirty minutes, maybe less, before the reactors hit critical and caused a full scale meltdown.

"Oh fuck…" Tony breathed, tongue feeling like lead.

Howard nodded in agreement face unusually solemn but strangely calm in the face of what was rapidly looking like certain annihilation. It was as he was pondering the old man's complete Zen that Tony spotted the even worse news and began cursing up a god-damn storm. Those fucking idiots! Had they not realised what setting of a nuclear blast in this fucking area would do besides destroying a rather beautiful part of West Virginia? Either they didn't and it was just a colossally disastrous side-effect of their 'let's kill the Avengers plan' or they did and they'd accepted that potentially massive loss of life was an acceptable outcome. That second thought made the billionaire sick to his stomach, how was potential loss of life even a consideration? Howard looked at him in confusion as Tony continued to rant, wincing in pain as his fingers flew over the keyboard in a desperate attempt to buy them some more time.

"How bad?" The elder Stark asked.

"Hitler times fucking infinity bad.." The billionaire snarled with something darker than anger "… Because it's apparently not just enough for the fuckers to vaporize everything within a three mile radius…" He was still fighting with the computer overrides to the reactor.

Howard quirked a brow "Not just? What do you mean not just?"

"We're right on a major fucking fault line, if this place blows it's going to set off a massive chain reaction that could level a large portion of the east side of the country." He banged his fists down on the console as the computer blue screened blocking Tony from accessing it any further. "GOD FUCKING DAMN IT!"

There was a moment of silence between the two men and Howard looked completely horrified by the notion, he'd committed his fair share of atrocities; some of them even nuclear related but never with the potential for such complete destruction. Tony stilled, heart twisting unpleasantly because looking at the old man was suddenly like looking in a mirror, he could see the grief and regret at the death brought about by his hands however indirectly it may be. It was an oddly poignant moment for Tony and for possibly the first time in his life he didn't cringe at the thought of being similar to Howard in any way, shape or form.

"What can we do?"

Tony ran his good hand through his hair and tugged gently trying to focus his thoughts. What _could_ they do? Their options were extremely limited and the only chance they had at this point was to try and manually override the reactor. Only problem was that by now the whole chamber would be flooded with radiation and would be a very literal death trap for anyone who entered, with the possible exception of the Hulk. Who as awesome as he was lacked the finesse required for the task at hand, meaning he was practically useless in the situation.

In short they were stuck in a catch 22.

In order to save the many someone was going to have to sacrifice themselves and boy didn't _that_ suck the proverbial balls, radiation poisoning was a horrifically nasty way to die. That was of course assuming they _stopped_ the imminent melt down and at this point even _that_ was a near impossibility. But then again since when had Tony not dealt with impossibilities and it sure as fuck wasn't the first time he'd had to lay himself down on the wire for the greater good.

He took a steadying breath.

He could do this, he _could_.

He was the only one that could.

Face set he turned to Howard, eyes steely and determined.

"I need you to go and wake up the rest of the Avengers and get them the fuck out of here."

"And what will _you_ be doing?"

The elder Stark cocked an eyebrow, not impressed at being ordered around. He folded his arms across his chest and stood his ground but in his eyes was a glimmer of understanding and recognition, he clearly had some idea about Tony was planning and as terrible a father he knew he'd been Howard did not want to see his son, the man he was now go to his death. Tony hesitated for a second before he flashed the other man his 'Paparazzi prick' smile in an attempt to disarm him. Howard didn't buy it for a second.

"You are _not_ going to stop the reactor manually Anthony it is suicide."

Tony laughed, he just couldn't help himself, he laughed loud and full throated. It figured the one time Howard would choose to be concerned about his welfare would be the one time where there was no other fucking choice. Fate was seriously life's greatest troll. Howard's face darkened and his eyes flashed with steel.

"You are not going Anthony." His voice held no argument.

"Try and stop me old man." The billionaire retorted, striding forward.

A surprisingly strong hand caught Tony around the forearm and pushed him backwards, back into the room and a growl rose in his throat.

"We haven't got time for this Howard!" Tony screamed, eyes wild "This whole place is going to blow and I am the only person who has a chance of stopping it! So stop with the misguided parenting and get the fuck out of my way!"

Before he even had the chance to move forward Tony found himself slamming against the wall, breath rushing violently from his lungs as Howard's creased but determined face bore down on him. He glared up at the older man and pushed back against him but Howard didn't budge an inch, it appeared that he'd inherited a few other perks from the bastardized serum he'd been given.

"Let me go!" Tony just about resisted the urge to spit in Howard's face.

The other man stood still and unyielding, his grip on his son like iron.

"No."

"Why are you doing this? We both know how this has to end." Tony said bitterly.

For a moment Howard's eyes turned sad and he looked like the old man he was supposed to be.

"No, no it doesn't Anthony."

The billionaire was about to question what the fuck Howard was talking about when for the second time that day a fist collided with his jaw and he slumped to ground unconscious. His last thought before he blacked out completely was that if he made it out of this he was going to get Happy to train him so he didn't have such a glass jaw. Howard shook his fist, the burn already fading due to the serum and looked down at the unconscious figure of his wayward son, now a man and far greater than he'd ever believed he could be. He'd made many, many mistakes in his life but he could see now that Anthony wasn't one of them and was, dare he say proud of the person he'd grown into. He was sure there was a lot more of his son's story beyond the fragments he'd heard that had shaped him and it was for that reason that he had to do this. Anthony still had so much to give the world and he, well he was the husk of an old, embittered man who should have died nearly two decades ago. He may not have been able to give his son what he needed when he'd been growing up but he could give him this one chance now, one small chance to live and prosper.

Because Anthony wasn't the only one who understood nuclear physics.

He strode to the door, turning back for a last glance.

"Be like Iron, Anthony. Stay strong."

The door clicked shut behind him.

~End Chapter 25~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Dun, Dun DUNNNN! So anybody know what's gonna happen? (Because I certainly don't…. Lol joking… mostly). Reviewers will be showered with awesomeness (Yup still a review whore ;P)


	26. Chapter Twenty-Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Howard does the right thing, the team is reunited and then once again separated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaack. Sorry about the wait… Usual crappy excuses apply (Work, life, meds). Anywho this chapter is dedicated to Kitteekatz69 who completely made my goddamn century with their review. But I still adore everyone else who is reading too… I loves all yo' faces
> 
> **Warnings:** **There is implied mentions of torture in this chapter along with some gore. If these trigger you in anyway please be aware when reading.**

Daddy Dearest

Chapter 26

The door closed with a rather final sounding click but Howard paid it no heed, he had more important things to worry about.

_Like stopping a nuclear reactor from exploding._

There was a brief moment before the man started moving that his thoughts went to the unconscious man lying in the next room. Anthony, _Tony,_ had far more to offer this world than he did. He realised that, _had_ realised that when Tony was just a child and that jealousy (he could now admit) had burned him to his very core. His trip into the future had only made that fact; and his own failings all the more obvious and _that_ was why he could not allow Tony to risk his life in such a foolish endeavour. It was better to let the old dogs have their day.

Howard almost cracked a smile at that thought, he had never been a man of sentiment but his time in the future; seeing the man his son had become and the incredible people he had surrounded himself with had forced a change in his perception, as hard as it was to come to terms with. He shook those thoughts from his head and focused on the task at hand, he didn't have the time for personal introspection. Pushing away from the door he was resting against he moved down the corridor with a confident grace that men half his age would have been jealous of. He'd memorized the route to the reactor when he'd been in the data room with Tony and with a bit of luck he would make it there with plenty of time to manually override the reactor and if he didn't…

The outcome wasn't worth thinking about.

But he was determined that it wasn't going to come to that, he was determined that if he was _going_ to go out then he was going to go out on his _own fucking terms_ and not the whims of others. Howard was a _Stark_ and that was what Stark's did, they didn't bow to the inevitable and made the impossible happen.

The journey through the compound to the reactor was thankfully uneventful due to the obvious lack of soldiers and even with pretty much memorizing the map he'd still had to take several detours when the occasional corridor had been caved in. He hadn't looked too closely at the damage but he had caught a distinct smear of a reddish-brown coloured substance that made his stomach twist ever so slightly. He was by no means a pacifist but that still didn't mean he _liked_ the sight or smell of blood. But detours aside Howard soon found himself at the outer chamber to the reactor and he eyed the hazmat suits with slightly dubious eyes before sighing slightly and donning one.

The thick steel door loomed ominously in front of him but the elder Stark pushed down any misgivings he had, he had made it this far and he wasn't about to back down now. It took him a few minutes to hack literally and figuratively through the electronic lock and when the lock finally slid open Howard let out a breath he hadn't been aware he was holding. He slipped on the thick padded glove, zipping it up and reached for the door handle feeling the heat from beyond through the studded metal handle and without any further consideration he opened the door and stepped inside.

Tony regained consciousness with a sharp jolt and winced at the pounding ache in his jaw, honestly this day had been fucking terrible enough without being sucker punched (twice!) and by his bastard of an old man. He was still more than a little surprised at Howard's behaviour, he would have thought the elder man would have jumped at the excuse to be rid of Tony but instead he'd been adamant that he not throw his life away.

Tony let out a hollow laugh even after years of living under Howard's shadow of abuse and neglect he still had a slightly rose-tinted view of the man. In honesty he probably stopped him because he thought he'd fuck it up, that seemed more like the man Tony had come to know and expect.

The billionaire grimaced as he got to his feet and rubbed his aching jaw eyes skirting across the various screens that were still flickering with life. He could just see the older man darting from camera to camera as he made his way across the compound and Tony had to wonder just how long he'd been unconscious for Howard to have already to have made it that far. It didn't settle the anger in his gut and as much as he wanted to follow Howard right now it was not the most advisable course of action. Dark eyes once again skimmed over the security footage of the Avengers and it turned his stomach like nothing he'd ever experienced, he had to get them free and at the very least on their way to safety before he went after Howard. But first things first…

His hands danced across the keyboard as he set up a secure line to one of the many Starktech satellites in orbit and began uploading every piece of data he could get his grubby fingers on. Fortunately for Tony the people Ross had, had working for him had been complete idiots and didn't do a very good job of properly deleting all their files in their haste to escape meaning that with very little effort on his part he quickly retrieved all of their little dirty secrets. He was going to need them after this fiasco and the WSC wasn't the only one who could play political hard ball, at the very least it would keep Pepper safe. But that was for a later time; right now he had other responsibilities to attend to.

Tony quickly memorized the layout of the building and the route he'd need to take before starting out of the door and heading back through the chaos that the Avengers attack had caused. Light's flickered on and off an impending omen of the brewing explosion and on more than one occasion he almost got crushed by a falling piece of masonry; it was only his adrenalin heightened reflexes that saved him from becoming a smear on the ground.

Like the rest of the compound the holding cells/ labs were completely devoid of personnel but there was a sinister feeling lingering about the place that Tony did not like in the slightest. He hacked into the first room and pushed the door open praying that it wasn't empty. It wasn't; Natasha lay on the cold metal slab, pale as death with a rather alarming smear of red down the left side of her face. Cautiously Tony approached (because he wasn't stupid, even in a state such as this Natasha was still deadly and the billionaire valued his ability to breathe) and began unhooking the straps binding her and the IV's that were sticking into Natasha's arm, as far as he could tell they were just saline and other standard medicinal fluids but knowing who they were dealing with it could be completely to the contrary.

With painful slowness the billionaire slid the needle from under the woman's skin, letting out a small sigh of relief as she began to stir. Relief that was momentarily forgotten as her cold hand grabbed the one holding the IV out of sheer reflex and squeezed hard enough to break bone.

"Owowow! Natasha! Stop! Relax it's me Tony, you're safe, I got you." His voice was pained and he fought not to squirm under Natasha's grasp.

Glassy green eyes slid open and focused immediately on the man hovering over her, after a few seconds recognition bloomed and she loosened her iron grip on Tony's hand.

"S-tark... W-what?" Her voice was shaking slightly but was strong.

Tony rubbed his sore hand and shrugged "Don't know how you got here but there are more important things right now, Ross rigged this place to blow... We need to get everyone awake and out of here."

That snapped the Widow to attention.

"Blow?"

The billionaire grimaced "Yeah reactor overload, completely inelegant and over the top but its Ross what do you expect."

" _Stark_..." Natasha ground out.

"Sorry, sorry anyway that's being taken care of... So let's wake the rest of the sleeping beauties up then."

Widow raised an eyebrow at him in question but Tony didn't elaborate further on his comment although she did notice the slight tightening of his jaw. Deciding to drop it for now she began testing her limbs and frowned at the sluggish movements of her body, whatever they'd dosed her with was still in effect.

"Tony, I can't move, I need you to see if you can find some adrenaline shots." Natasha hoped that a quick boost would be all she needed to get everything up and running.

The billionaire obeyed and began rummaging through the many drawers scattered around the room. Finally he found a small vial of adrenaline and a syringe and hurried back to Natasha, holding the items out to her. She reached out and took a loose grip on the vial. This wasn't going to work, she barely had the strength to hold the vial never mind push the syringe into her heart.

"Tony, I need your help. I can't administer the adrenaline; I haven't got the strength to push it into my heart."

It wasn't often that Tony Stark was surprised by something but this certainly counted.

"What?... But I can't, I don't know where... I could kill you Nat."

Natasha smiled "I can position it, I just need you to push it down."

The billionaire couldn't really argue with that as much as he wanted to and gave a terse nod. He took the vial back and filled the syringe before handing it back to the assassin who positioned it over her heart.

"Quick and sharp Stark." She murmured guiding his hand around the plunger of the syringe.

Tony took a deep breath and pushed down hard, piercing Natasha with the needle. She let out a pained huff of breath but remained perfectly still as the billionaire depressed the plunger and shot the hormone straight into Widow's heart. The seconds ticked by and Natasha jerked as it took affect feeling strength flood her limbs and she slid off the table, happy when her legs supported her weight.

"Okay, let's go."

Tony knew better than to offer the woman help, she would probably break him in two but that didn't stop him holding the door open for her.

With Natasha at his side reviving the rest of the team went smoothly and soon they were down to wading their last remaining member. Thor had been abjectly apologetic when he'd come around, getting down on bended knee like some Shakespearian hero which had caused Tony to roll his eyes in exasperation as he hastily forgave him (because he wouldn't get up otherwise.) The billionaire approached the last door and felt his stomach twist slightly, this particular room's camera had been blocked and he dreaded to think the damage Ross had had the opportunity to inflict on his science bro before taking off.

He hacked the lock and as the door swung open Tony had to hold back a gag as the overwhelming smell of blood hit his nose.

"Oh holy fuck." Clint murmured in disgust.

Bruce lay strapped face down on the cold metal table arms stretched above his head. His back was cut to ribbons, skin and muscle peeled back; bleeding profusely from the vile looking wounds. And fuck there was a lot of blood, there literally wasn't a surface not splattered with the crimson liquid; they even managed to get it on the ceiling.

Tony went to move forward fear and disgust warring within him but was halted by Steve's hand on his arm.

"Tony, you can't... The radiation."

"Fuck the radiation Cap, if we don't do something he's gonna bleed to death." He shrugged off Steve's hand and strode into the room.

The billionaire donned a pair of gloves and began trying to clean up the wounds on Bruce's back and staunch the bleeding while the rest of the team began removing the various lines and metal hooks imbedded in his skin. Bruce didn't stir even once as they pulled out everything and it made worry bubble in Tony's gut.

"Just what the fuck have they dosed him with?" Clint asked, face twisted with emotion.

"I fear it may be the same concoction that I was afflicted with." Thor growled, eyes flashing.

Tony grimaced remembering Thor's wide eyed stare as he tried vainly to suck in a breath and Ross had said that he had used the same stuff on the Hulk but to inflict this kind of damage without Mean Green making an appearance meant that there was something else at work here. Clearly Natasha seemed to think the same as she starting rummaging through the vials in search of what they had used, she came away moments later swearing violently in Russian.

"Gamma suppressants... Gamma suppressants _on top_ of the gas; were they _trying_ to kill him?" Natasha's voice was icy.

"It's _Ross_." Clint growled "I wouldn't put it past him."

There was a look of thunder on all of their faces as that information sunk in.

"Is there anything here to counteract the suppressants?" Steve asked.

Immediately Tony and Natasha flew into action skimming through the mixture of chemicals available and a few minutes later the billionaire let out a whoop of victory as he found just what he was looking for. He grabbed hold of a sealed syringe and ripped it open, plunging the sharp end into the wax sealed bottle drawing the liquid out before he carefully grasped Bruce's arm looking for an artery.

"Sorry about this buddy" Tony murmured as he stuck the needle in.

The moments ticked by and then there was a soft moan as the physicist stirred.

"Gnnngh… w-wwwwhhhh…." His voice was thick with pain and Tony felt himself wince, Natasha was not quite as affected her tone brisk as she spoke to the semi-conscious man.

"Doc, you need to let Hulk out…"

Slowly, achingly slowly Bruce turned his head to meet her gaze, the agony the movement caused clear on his face. His eyes were at half-mast but even below the lids Natasha could see that his pupils were blown wide and the thin ring of iris visible were already beginning to bleed green. The Hulk had just been waiting for the opportunity. The physicist opened his mouth and screamed a mingled roar of pain and anger and a darkness they all knew so, so well as his skin began to knit itself back together flushed the bright gamma green of the Hulk. The transformation seemed to take longer than usual but soon the intimidating figure of Bruce's 'Other Guy' was looming over them, not exactly looking too pleased.

"Hey there Mean Green." Tony greeted "Mind if we just give you a quick look over?"

Sharp green eyes zeroed in on the billionaire and Hulk grunted still hunched as if ready to receive a blow.

"Hulk fine..." The giant grumbled, but he seemed cowed somewhat and it made Tony's stomach twist in pure anger.

"I believe ya' buddy, I do but you know me not happy until I see it for myself. So spin..."

Tony was proud of how calm he managed to keep his voice, truly, truly proud because he felt anything _but_ calm at that moment. The Hulk huffed slightly and slowly turned around allowing the whole team see that the damage had been healed.

"Cool, cool and Bruce?"

Hulk shot Tony a 'really, now' look but still answered.

"Banner sleep, wake up good."

The billionaire felt himself relax minutely and he nodded back at the Hulk, clapping his hands together. He had his team back and that meant it was time to deal with the rest of the situation. Tony had already filled in the team on most of the details as he brought them around to a mixed reaction of anger and disbelief; team now whole once again they all shared a solemn look and moved toward the holding area's exit. They reached the door in a close knit formation with Hulk bringing up the rear.

"Let's blow this popsicle stand!" Clint crowed, although it lacked its usual cheer.

Tony hesitated coming to a stop something in him rebelling at the idea of leaving so soon, he couldn't explain it he just knew that leaving was the wrong thing to do. Steve gave him a look and it was as if the other man was reading his thoughts, blue eyes strangely intense in the flickering emergency lighting.

"Tony no, I know that look, whatever you're thinking of doing, no."

The billionaire flashed a fake grin, one of his 'media darling' grins that no one, not even Hulk fell for, they knew him far too well to be taken in so easily.

"Cap the whole point of coming here was to get him out, I can't just leave him and let this clusterfuck be for nothing."

"Stark…" Clint interrupted "You said yourself that the reactors are on the other side of the compound, there isn't time to make it to him before the place possibly blows and if it does blow we'll be needed to try and contain the fallout. We need to be practical here."

Tony found it odd that _Clint_ of all people was giving him advice on not being reckless, the man was kind of infamous for it but there was _No. Fucking. Way._ He was leaving Howard behind again for the vultures to snatch.

He just fucking _wasn't_.

"He's right Stark." Natasha agreed with the archer, her cool green eyes tinged with sympathy.

"But…" Tony hissed.

Tony's eyes moved from Avenger to Avenger and all of them, _all of them_ bar one seemed to share Clint's sentiment, he wanted to scream and stomp his feet like a petulant child but he knew it would do him no good. A large green hand landed on his shoulder warm, encompassing and surprisingly gentle and the billionaire turned his gaze up to the giant green man towering over him, his ire cooling; a strange irony he mused to himself.

"Hulk help Tony."

It took everything Tony had not to just outright gape at the statement and it appeared the rest of the team were having a similar reactions surprise and disapproval written clear across their faces.

"Hulk…" Steve began in his 'Captain America' voice.

The goliath growled under his breath the fingers on Tony's shoulder tightening slightly but not enough to hurt.

"No. Old Man need Tony help. Tony help Hulk, Hulk help Tony…" Here he flashed a grin at the man caught in his grasp and the billionaire suddenly saw something aching familiar in the green face "…Bros."

Tony couldn't help himself he laughed, laughed long and hard his heart light.

"Fuck yeah Big Guy, couldn't have said it better myself." He bumped a giant finger with his fist.

Hulk beamed and carefully picked up the billionaire up holding him close to his chest while the rest of the team moved forward to stop them. Tony paid them no mind holding on as tight as he could, ignoring the shouts and threats from the rest of the team, this was his mess to clean up and he wasn't going to let the old bastard elude him again. Ducking his head under the Hulk enormous chin (as to afford himself at least some protection) he murmured.

"Heigh-ho silver, away."

The Hulk jumped, leaving a furious group of Avengers behind them.

~End Chapter 26~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Sorry, sorry, sorry… I just couldn't resist some Science Bro/ Hulk-Tony feels. IT REFUSED TO GO AWAY! *Coughs* Anywho Holy shit, this little brain vomit story has gotten so freaking long :O but we're drawing so very close to the end now… One maybe two more chapters and then an epilogue. Thank you all so much for continuing to read, review and fav you honestly make my life less awful and more awesome.


	27. Chapter Twenty-Seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which hard decisions are made and the line between father and son becomes a little more blurry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Speedy, speedy update! Well for me anywho… Thanks to everyone for reviewing and reading I loves all yo' faces! You officially make the world awesome and stuff!

Daddy Dearest

Chapter 27.

Tony had to admit that flying by Hulk was an experience he'd rather not repeat if he could avoid it. While it was as fast and efficient as flying in the armour, the exposed nature of it made it exhilarating beyond measure, the ultimate adrenaline high but more than a little bit terrifying (not that he would ever, _ever_ admit it). He was used to being surrounded by a suit that could take most of the G-forces he was exposed to and protect him from the elements but tucked against Hulk's massive chest he could feel every shift of gravitational force and the rush of air through his clothing as they plummeted toward the earth below.

The landed on the far side of the compound with a deafening crash that made the whole area shudder. With gentleness that many would not suspect the Hulk capable of he lowered Tony to the ground, steadying the billionaire as he stumbled forward his legs shaky from the wild ride and the adrenaline dump into his system.

"Thanks buddy." Tony wheezed, taking a deep breath to try and fight the painful tightness and nausea in his chest and stomach. G-forces were a complete and utter bitch.

The Hulk didn't move back just held the other man steady as he regained his bearings and balance his green eyes gleaming with concern. After a few moments of deep breathing and a few dry heaves the billionaire stood himself up straight looking a little pale but no worse for wear and absently brushed the dust and debris from his person. Crashing through a roof sans armour had certainly been an _enlightening_ experience and apparently a dirty one, Tony was pretty convinced he was going to be brushing cement dust out of his hair for weeks.

Finally feeling like he could walk without face planting into the ground Tony moved forwards in the direction of the reactor, followed closely by his big green shadow. Hulk had over shot their destination slightly and that meant Tony had to move a little quicker than he actually felt up to at the moment but soon the reactor came into view. Beneath their feet the ground hummed, the vibrations resonating through both of them and lining the billionaire's stomach with dread. That did _not_ feel like a reactor winding down and Tony tried not to think what that meant.

"Bad." Hulk mumbled "Bad, bad, bad."

"Yeah, that about sums it up Big Guy." Tony replied.

The billionaire took that moment to wonder whether any of Bruce's knowledge had possibly filtered down into Hulk's conscious mind and the giant understood how bad of a situation this actually was but Tony seriously doubted it. Either way Hulk knew that this was not a good place to be.

It took a few minutes for the pair to fight their way into the building, the entrance had been damaged pretty badly but with Hulk as a clean-up crew they made short work of the debris. Tony sprinted through the corridors toward the control room Hulk squeezing through the corridors in order to follow; they certainly hadn't been designed with the green guy in mind and it was somewhat of a tight fit. Finally they reached the outer chamber and the billionaire looked around thoughtfully, his gaze glancing over the sputtering, sparking tech and landing on the destroyed door lock. He stalked over and ran his eyes critically over the ruined keypad, the override was shoddily done and entirely rudimentary but at least it had worked and at least Tony knew that Howard had at least made it this far. Hulk ambled into the room behind him filling the whole space with his presence.

"Nice of you to join us Green Bean."

The giant raised a brow at Tony and made his way over to the door almost flinching as he approached, something clearly making him feel uncomfortable. He laid a giant green hand on the heavy door and frowned.

"Hot."

Tony looked confused, sure the door was warmer than it should be that was to be expected but it wasn't exactly what he'd call hot then his brain kicked into gear and he gave himself a mental shake. Idiot, the big guy wasn't talking about the heat he was talking about the radiation beyond. The Hulk was almost like a gamma battery, absorbing the gamma radiation from the air around him, it made perfect sense that he would also be sensitive to other types of radiation.

"The radiation? You can feel it?"

Hulk nodded his head and drew his hand back.

"Hot. Too hot."

Well _that_ didn't sound good and if Howard had gone in there, there was a distinct chance he was nothing but a crispy vegetable by now and that made Tony feel nauseous all over again. There _had_ to be a way of ascertaining whether Howard was still in the room, he'd fled or was unconscious on the floor without putting anyone else at risk or causing the reactor to breach. He was startled as burst of static filled the air and he whipped his head around to find the source of the noise. There was an intercom, how had he not noticed that earlier?

He strode over to the crackling panel and almost jumped out of his skin when a voice erupted from the other side.

"Anthony what on earth are you _doing here_? How did you get here so quickly?"

Well that answered that question, Howard was still alive and kicking and Tony fought the urge to roll his eyes. He jabbed the call button on the intercom ferociously.

"I had a big green air cab" He ground out through clenched teeth, beyond exasperated "And you seriously think I'm going to just _leave_ you here after all the shit we've been through just to find you."

"You stupid, stupid child! Why are you so infuriatingly stubborn?" The static filled voice roared

The words stung far deeper than Tony would admit and he set his jaw even though he knew the other man couldn't see his face. Behind him Hulk shifted in agitation and Tony placed a placating hand on his arm, it wouldn't do for the big guy to get too angry right now. This wasn't the ideal location to get his smash on.

"Pot, kettle have you met black old man?... Now why don't you make yourself y'know useful and catch me up on what the hell is going on in there?"

There was a sound that could have been a growl of frustration or just another burst of static.

"The cooling system is shot to hell and the whole reactor is overheating!"

Tony frowned that was, that was _bad_ with a capital 'B'. He needed to get in there, see exactly what they had access to and try and MacGyver it the best they could. He knew that they were rapidly running out of time and that they were lucky that the damn thing hadn't already exploded. He moved across the room to where the hazmat suits were heaped on the floor and began pulling on the coarse layered material wary of his injured hand.

Hulk watched him suiting up and growled, moving in front of the door leading to the inner chamber like an overzealous guard dog. Tony _glared_.

"Hulk, move."

The giant green man shook his head standing his ground, not that that was a particular hard thing for him to do.

"Too hot, Tony cook."

The billionaire growled. "I know what I am doing; the radiation won't hurt me while I'm in the suit. So _move_."

Hulk remained steadfastly in place, his acidic eyes narrowed and broad face resolute. Behind them the intercom once again crackled into life Howard's voice echoing through the speaker stern and unyielding.

"Hulk do not let him in this room, the RAD's are beyond danger levels and even with the hazmat suit on he's going to burn."

Tony bit back a shriek of indignant frustration, he was not a child! He was capable of making decisions for himself and a little radiation poisoning was not going to stop him from doing the right thing. He clearly said this out loud (damn useless verbal filter) because the next minute the elder Stark's voice sounded over speakers, his tone nothing like Tony had ever heard.

"I know you are Anthony and that is why I am the one who has to do this. I will not have you throwing your life away so carelessly when you still have so much to give. I will not let you cut short your own legacy."

The billionaire was stunned into silence, his face slack with shock for a moment before his anger re-emerged.

"Why, why would you say that?" He spat.

"Because it's true Anthony, you have much more to offer than an old man twenty years past his prime. It's right that I'm the one to do this."

"Right?" Tony spluttered aghast "How the fuck do you figure that one out?"

This time there was definitely an exasperated sigh over the intercom's speakers.

"The serum, whatever bastardised version of it they gave me increased my body's ability to deal with threats. It can deal with the radiation far more effectively and efficiently than yours can. I have the knowledge to stop this, although at this point I can only see one course of action. That General and his team really made a fucking mess in here."

The billionaire's eyebrows shot into his hairline as his stomach twisted unpleasantly, that did not sound like a good thing.

"One course of action?"

There was a beat of silence before Howard spoke again, his voice sounding a little unnerved but at the same time determined.

"I'm going to have to manually flood the reactor from the inside, they completely destroyed all the coolant controls. The only release left is the emergency manual one."

Tony's heart _stopped_.

"No! _No_! That is fucking suicide, even if your super fucking enhanced immune system can handle the RAD's to manually release the coolant you have to be in the room, a fucking _sealed_ room! Not even you can stop yourself from drowning!"

Tony would have liked to believe that he didn't sound like a hysterical woman but he knew damn well it was a fucking lie. He knew he had issues with drowning; it was highly featured in all of his worst nightmares and to think that someone… His own fucking father he reminded himself was willing choosing that path made his skin crawl. The entire situation was completely fucked and Tony couldn't see a way out of this. If the situation was as the old man had told it flooding the reactor was the only way to stop the reaction and if Ross's men had done that much damage to the control system…

He bit his lip to stop the half frustrated scream, half sob tearing itself from his throat.

"There isn't any other way." Howard said softly, his voice losing its usual harsh tone, he sounded like a man who had accepted his death and it made the billionaire want to destroy something.

"There is always another way!" Tony spat petulantly "That's what you always said, Stark's always find the other way! You can't do this!"

" _Anthony_!" It was sharp but not cruel and the billionaire fell silent. "If there was another way I would have taken it but there isn't. I'm sorry you're so against this but you know I'm the only one capable of this."

Anger, sadness, futility and resignation warred through Tony, this wasn't right; wasn't _fair_. He had just miraculously gotten the man back and now he was being stolen once again and there was nothing he could do about it.

"This isn't fair..."

There was a short crackled snort of mirthless laughter from the speakers.

"Since when has life been fair Anthony?"

Tony had no answer for that, no quippy come back, no snarky retort, he was done. His head dropped as he bit the inside of his cheek hard enough to draw blood in order to stop himself from saying something he would regret. Behind him Hulk stepped forward and placed a large hand gently on Tony's shoulder.

"Old Man right." He said as gently as a giant could.

Tony resisted the urge to shrug of the massive hand, he was feeling tired, rubbed raw and it was getting harder by the minute to actually contain the crashing wave of emotion that was threatening to seize him. It also didn't help that the burst of adrenaline that had kept him going so far was beginning to wear off and the pain from his injuries were becoming much more prominent. The billionaire's shoulders slumped partially in defeat and partially under Hulk's giant hand.

"Fine, whatever…" The pain was obvious.

The intercom crackled once again but there was nothing but the sound of heavy breathing over the speaker as if Howard was unsure what to say in such a tentative moment. Tony knew that if the situations had been reversed then he probably would have been the same, how do you put into words what twenty years had been unable to heal? There was a sharp intake of breath and finally the elder man spoke.

"For what it's worth Anthony I'm proud of you…. You've become a fine man. Goodbye…. Son."

The billionaire stood there slack jawed his eyes wet looking as the intercom burst into static and without even realising what he was doing he slammed his fist into the intercom. Hulk grunted and rolled his eyes but he understood the need to lash out, it was generally his primary modus operandi. The adrenaline finally having run out Tony slumped to his knees; his body weak and his soul aching.

He just wanted this to end.

Howard took his hand off of the intercom watching with grim amusement as it shook, he hadn't expected Anthony to show up with that green friend of his but as usual the boy was full of surprises. More than that he hadn't expected him to be so vehemently opposed to his plan, he was aware that Anthony didn't have the most positive of feelings toward him but the way he'd challenged him; it was almost as if he cared about his well-being. The thought would be laughable if it didn't seem like it was the only logical conclusion at this point, the boy had pretty much admitted it back in the holding cells.

He stepped forward into the inner chamber of the reactor, feeling the heat bleeding though the thick, rough fabric of his hazmat suit. Time seemed to slow as he moved the feeling almost surreal and in the back of his mind he knew it was a side effect of the radiation on his system but at the moment that was the least of the worries. Howard moved over to what was left of the main console and began the countdown to sealing the reactor room, he watched the numbers for a moment eyes blurring slightly with sweat before walking calmly and with dignity into the main reactor.

The door closed with a hissing click and the only noise the older man could hear was the steady thrum of the reactor. It was almost unbearably hot, his whole body feeling like it was being cooked from the outside in but he didn't have the time to focus on that he had come here with a mission; one he had no intention of failing. He could see the coolant pipes overhead and followed them to where a release valve was visible. Slowly he reached out and twisted the valve with all his strength but the damn thing wouldn't budge. Cursing softly Howard looked for something he could use as a lever, thankfully the reactor had not been immune to the crazy bastard's rampage and there was debris littering the floor. He picked up a round metal tube and wedged it against the valve, using the entirety of his body weight to force it open.

There was a brief second and then the liquid exploded outwards like a torrent hitting Howard square in the chest. It was colder than he'd anticipated and it burned in contrast to the deep searing heat of the room. Backing away from the gushing valve his eyes scanned the rest of the pipes around the room, they were shaking under the pressure and beginning to rupture, thin streams of the coolant leaking from the rapidly forming cracks.

It wouldn't be long now, that much he knew.

Howard tucked himself in the corner feel so very, _very_ tired and waited. There was a loud groan that even eclipsed the alarms blaring and then the pipes overhead gave under the pressure flooding the room entirely with coolant. The older man just sat there as the liquid quickly rose past his chest, lapping at the underneath of his chin his whole body feeling A small smile quirked at his lips as he let himself relax as the coolant rose above his head, the vile liquid rushing down into his lungs forcing out the air. There was a fleeting moment of panic as his body rebelled against the intrusion but then he went limp and still as the oxygen deprivation took hold.

Howard's last thought before the darkness took hold was that he had at least died doing something worthwhile.

~End Chapter 27~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Uh… Please don't kill me. Soooo okay next chapter _should_ be the last and then it's just the epilogue. Wow I can't believe I've nearly finished this, considering this seriously was originally meant to be at most ten chapters it's sort of spawned a life of it's own…. Thanks for all of your support, it really does mean so much.


	28. Chapter Twenty-Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Hulk is a goddamned BAMF, so is Bruce and SHIELD finally show up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I AM A FUCKING MORON. This was the chapter I meant to post. I am seriously a goddamned idiot!!! *Bangs head on desk*
> 
> OH well double update it is then.

Daddy Dearest.

Chapter 28

In the outer chamber of the reactor Tony was officially flipping his shit. After the intercom had gone dead he'd had a startling moment of clarity and then the red haze had descended. He'd picked up a crowbar that had been squirreled away in some long forgotten nook and had literally gone to town on the various work stations and counters, a human typhoon of chaos and destruction. Tony was fairly certain that if Hulk hadn't been stood in front of the door leading to the inner chamber then he would have just smashed straight through it, radiation be damned. He _hated_ losing, he hated not being able to do anything in a situation and as the warning alarm began to wind down he hated, _hated with an undying passion_ that he had once again lost the opportunity to try and build something with the man that was his father or at the very least try and mend some of the past wrongs still festering between them.

Tony knew that Howard had felt just as conflicted as he did in this whole situation about their role in the others life in what had to be a disorientating but incredible future. But he knew that at least toward the end something had changed between them, that they had both begun to see one another in a new light and although there were still many things that drove them apart there could have been just as many to heal the wounds.

But now that opportunity was _gone_.

His good hand gripped tighter around the crowbar and with a scream of fury he smashed the last of the functioning monitors, glass shattering and flying in all directions. Hulk had seemingly had enough of his tantrum and stepped forward once again, holding the man steady between his giant palms and Tony had looked up into those acidic eyes and just crumbled.

"Tony stop. Hurt."

Panting heavily he dropped the heavy metal and staggered backwards out of Hulk's grip clutching his injured hand to his chest and steadfastly the drip, drip of blood; a piece of flying glass must have caught him on the last barrage. The billionaire didn't know what to say, what to _do_. He'd never been good with dealing with emotions even when his life had been 'stable', well as stable as the life of Tony Stark could be never mind when he was stuck in the middle of what accounted as a fucking warzone. He just…. He just couldn't compute.

The giant stepped forward again and Tony felt large arms wrap gently but awkwardly around him and that was it that was the final straw he just couldn't _fucking_ _do_ this. A small broken sob escaped his lips even as he tried to clamp it down and he buried his face in the Hulk's chest as he tried to fight off his impending mental breakdown. Hulk just stood there enclosing the billionaire, looking frustrated that he couldn't smash what was hurting his friend.

The moments passed by and soon Tony managed to regain his composure, he pulled himself from Hulk's arms and surreptitiously wiped at his red rimmed eyes. He was Tony _fucking_ Stark and he had an image to maintain, the Hulk however was not buying it for a second but he wisely kept his opinion to himself.

"How's it feeling Big Guy?" He asked voice more than a little croaky.

Hulk seemed to catch on to his meaning as he eyed the door with a grimace before turning back to Tony with a shrug.

"Colder."

Tony nodded his understanding still feeling too raw to muster up an appropriately witty response, his own regret hanging heavy in the air. Taking a deep breath he headed toward the exit knowing that if he didn't leave now he probably wouldn't leave until they broke in there and recovered Howard's body. He winced at the thought, at least last time he'd been spared the torment of identifying the body he had a sinking suspicion that he wouldn't be as lucky this time. The idea of seeing Howard's body disfigured and mangled by radiation made bile jump to his throat and it took all of his willpower not to vomit on the spot.

The walk out of the complex was slow going; the billionaire's body feeling leaden with every step; taking more and more effort just to move but after the hellish minutes passed the feeling of fresh air on his sweaty forehead was _oh so_ welcome. The Hulk followed close behind occasionally turning his large head back toward the reactor with a look of something that resembled curiosity on his face but even he let out a grumble of relief when they hit the cool air of the night.

Tony barely made it three steps before he stumbled and almost face-planted into the dirt, he just caught himself using his good arm and heaved out a huge heaving breath. Figuring that standing would probably not the best idea he twisted himself around into a sitting position and drew his knees up to his chest burying his face in them. Hulk sat down beside him the earth juddering slightly as he did so and turned his silent gaze on the small man who was his friend.

How long they both just sat there neither of them had any idea but the silence of their camaraderie was broken by the thundering of footsteps behind them and a familiar voice shouting "Stark you complete lunatic."

Tony raised his head to see the familiar red, white and blue uniform of Captain America sprinting toward them followed by Thor, Hawkeye and Widow. He didn't respond to them too lost in his own mind to really acknowledge them approaching, it was only when Steve grabbed hold of his shoulder and shook almost violently that the billionaire raised grief stricken eyes to meet his furious blue.

"Stark, what the hell?! You don't just go running off on your own agenda you know better than that!"

The Captain wasn't really looking at Tony as he ranted but the second he caught sight of Tony's face he stopped dead, he knew something was horribly, terribly wrong.

"What happened? Where's Howard?" He asked, his voice adopting a softer tone.

The billionaire pointed weakly to the reactor building. "He's… He's still in there. Ross's men they destroyed the system that regulated the cooling, he had to manually release it into the reactor core…."

There was a multitude of gasps from the three newcomers and each of them bowed their heads in understanding and sympathy.

"Tony…"

"No Cap, I don't want to hear it. All I want right now is a shot of ridiculously over expensive whiskey and Pepper, I don't want to talk about it, and I don't want to think about it. I just want to forget this ever happened and then possibly make those responsible pay."

Steve nodded "That's fair, I think all of us would like to forget today ever happened."

There was a murmur of assent from all those present, even Hulk who still had that odd look on his face. Abruptly he stood startling the rest of the team and then without so much as a word he began walking back toward the reactor building. Confused but intrigued Tony staggered to his feet and tried to follow but was stopped by a giant green hand in his face.

Tony frowned. "What the hell Big Guy?"

"Hulk need check thing. Not safe for Tin Man. Too hot still for Tin Man."

The billionaire looked like he was about to argue but Hulk didn't give him a chance, he'd already leapt before the smaller man could even get two words out of his mouth. He watched as the green giant landed on the roof of the building close to the centre and very carefully began peeling away sections of the roof, making sure to adjust himself as to not put too much weight on the weakened structure. From their position on the ground the rest of the Avengers watched in wonderment as the Hulk was there one minute and then suddenly the next minute not.

The minutes ticked by and then a green blur shot into the sky a roar of victory echoing through the air. Hulk landed a few meters away from the assembled team something bright orange clutched to his chest. Tony's brain snapped to attention as he realised what Hulk had done and what the bundle of orange in his arms was or rather who.

Eyes wide and heart pounding Tony raced forward only to be stopped by the Hulk roaring at them.

"Back. Hot."

The billionaire understood and kept his distance as Hulk shrunk down into his much smaller counterpart. Bruce's hair was stuck flat against his forehead and his skin was shining slicked in the coolant; he wobbled uncertainly for a moment and shivered before purposefully sinking to his knees and pulling off the hazmat suit from his quarries prone form. Tony watched in wonderment as Howard was revealed and felt his heart squeeze tightly in his chest, at least this way he could get some closure.

Bruce seemed lost in his own little world, examining the elder Stark with a startling proficiency considering he'd just woken up from a Hulk out. That however didn't stop Tony wanting to shake him, Howard was _dead_ , there was no way he'd survived that and nothing the physicist did was going to change that. Still Bruce worked in silence, laboriously starting on chest compressions focused and completely unaware of the world around him.

Tony watched, the rest of the team milling behind him, his eyes lowering to the ground in resigned futility.

This _whole_ _scenario_ was futile.

It was just...

The sound of a retching cough pierced through the billionaire's mind and his head shot up.

"Son of a bitch."

Howard was curled on his side puking up the coolant still flooding his lungs, while Bruce supported him carefully. The physicist turned his head his face still solemn and motioned with a quick jerk that it was safe to approach them. Tony didn't hesitate but the rest of the team did, clearly wary of coming close to something that had not long ago been in the heart of a nuclear reactor. Coming to a halt beside his friend Tony fell to his knees helping the clearly exhausted Bruce to support the still vomiting Howard.

"I... I don't understand. How did Hulk know?"

Bruce shifted uncomfortably.

"He didn't... He was just determined not to leave him behind for the 'bad men' to claim, I guess he still doesn't trust people outside the team much." He let out a weak chuckle.

Tony sat aghast still gently cradling the older man.

"But... How..." He wasn't even sure what he was trying to say or ask.

Again the physicist squirmed under the scrutiny but he seemed to understand what Tony wanted to know.

"He could hear his pulse, only just but he heard it and knew that he needed me to help. He kept growling 'Heart' through the shift back. He normally doesn't do that so I figured it had to be important."

"So basically what you're saying is that he pulled a fucking Captain America on us." Tony snarked when he regained his voice.

This time when Bruce laughed it was genuine even if it made him pale about ten shades due to the exertion.

"Sounds about right."

There was a groan and Howard twisted his body so he was once again lying on his back, his dark eyes unfocused.

"...w't..." His voice was so hoarse it was painful to even listen to.

Tony ran a hand through Howard's sodden hair, a gesture he'd once seen his mother use to calm him and whispered into the man's ear.

"It's ok old man, just me. Don't worry we got you, you're safe."

There was a brief moment where he'd thought Howard would try to fight but he'd just relaxed under Tony's hand and slipped back into unconsciousness, his breathing shallow but steady. Somewhat humbled by the display of trust the billionaire let his whole posture relax and let the feeling of pure relief wash over him. It was over.

The relief didn't last long however as the sound of engines roared overhead and a familiar trick of the light caught the Avengers eyes.

The Helicarrier.

Tony rolled his eyes, typical SHIELD always show up after they're actually needed.

It always amazed Tony how ruthlessly efficient SHIELD peons could be with the proper motivation. It had barely been an hour since they'd been picked up by the Helicarrier and they'd already been showered, fed and shoved into a conference room to wait for Nick Fury to debrief them. But there was something about this that niggled at Tony's mind and he couldn't help but feel like he'd be played somehow. Clearly he wasn't the only one as Bruce and Natasha's faces held similar contemplative looks but he didn't get the opportunity to ask their opinion as the director chose that moment to walk through the door and seat himself at the head of the conference table.

The silence was almost palpable.

"I suppose I should congratulate you on a successful mission." He drawled, steepling his fingers in front of him.

Tony bit the inside of his cheek hard enough to draw blood in attempt to stop the comment that begged to be spoken. Apparently he was alone in his restraint, something that was to everyone's surprise. Steve bent forward, resting on his elbows and levelled Fury with a cool glare.

"With all due respect Sir go fuck yourself, there was nothing vaguely successful about that clusterfuck. We were lucky pure and simple."

It wasn't often that Tony had the urge to hug someone, especially Capsicle but in that moment he wanted to hug Steve hard and never let him go.

"Cap's right, the whole thing was a mess... And we were next to useless..." Bruce muttered, his eyes swirling hazel "They completely had our number Fury, we were lucky nobody was killed... Well at least nobody innocent."

There was a sneer in his voice that Tony heartily agreed with; anybody who had died had probably deserved it for agreeing to participate in such madness. Clint, Thor and Natasha also seemed to agree their heads bobbing slowly.

Fury seemed unfazed, his good eye dark and unreadable.

"That may be the case, but regardless you managed to prevent a catastrophic nuclear event, obtain substantial Intel on the WSC's comings and goings and recover the target. All in all I'd say that was a win."

The Avengers glowered as one at the director; who seemed completely unperturbed by the action. Finally Tony had had enough.

"So what's the big picture Nicky? Care to let us in on your little pow-wow or are we out of the loop again because we've danced to your tune? Because honestly I'm getting a little sick and tired of being the plaything of others."

Fury sighed.

"Listen Stark it may come as a surprise to you but I've not been trying to play you. I'll admit that some of the opportunities this situation presented have been fortuitous for SHIELD but I didn't purposefully set any of this up and nor did I plan to have you take the fall. I already had the SHIELD lawyers preparing a case to dismantle all that traitor shit. You're my team and while it doesn't always seem like it I've got your back."

Tony wanted to retort, to say something witty but that had seemed almost sincere, hell even Natasha looked convinced by that statement and the billionaire was hard pressed not to accept her judgement. This _was_ what she did for a living after all.

"As for what happens next, that is up to you. You're the ones with the Intel it's up to you what you do with it." His voice could have almost passed as indifferent but there was a gleam in his eye that the billionaire knew so well.

Tony almost grinned at that, _that_ was the Nick Fury he'd come to know, loathe with a fiery passion and somewhat respect. Not the guy who'd been talking moments prior, he was honestly surprised the other man hadn't broken out into hives at having to actually show a modicum of emotion. Tony was well aware that Fury knew that he'd give SHIELD the Intel, they were the best equipped to utilize it but that didn't mean he'd make it easy or cheap for them.

"Oh I intend to Nicky, I _fully_ intend to." He flashed Fury a ruthless, shark like grin.

The rest of the meeting was pretty boring after that, each of the Avengers giving their own version of the events as best they could. There were a few brief moments in the debrief that had Tony shuddering (Thor and Bruce's description of how Ross's latest creation had affected them being one such thing.) but the rest was fairly boring considering it was describing what had turned out to be and _epic_ battle. He himself kept his report on what had happened in the reactor to an utter minimum. That particular encounter still a little too raw to really deal with, with anything other than professional detachment. Soon however Fury was satisfied and dismissed them, telling them to go get some rest and recover.

Tony did neither of those things.

The second he'd been released he'd headed straight down to the medical bay where Howard had been taken. The man still hadn't regained consciousness, which was probably for the best considering the battery of tests he'd been subjected to and Tony watched him through the plate-glass window, like some creepy stalker.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Tony started and turned around and relaxed when he saw Bruce hovering in the doorway, looking exhausted but generally comfortable.

"Think you'll need more than a penny Banner."

Bruce snorted softly and moved to Tony's side, a solid presence of support.

"Any news yet?" He asked.

Tony shook his head and sighed in frustration.

"No, they're still waiting on the test results. Which of course are taking forever because they _aren't_ using _my_ tech."

Bruce rolled his eyes but recognized the avoidance technique for what it was.

"I'm sure they'll be here soon Tony and I'm sure they'll come back fine."

"Do you honestly believe that?" The billionaire asked.

The physicist felt his heart squeeze painfully in his chest and he took a moment to consider his words. As painful as it might be his friend deserved the truth.

"Honestly... No. But it's better that he's here and able to receive any help he needs than rotting in some radioactive Satan's pit."

"Wow, way to sugar coat it Bruce." Tony's voice was pained.

Bruce looked a little embarrassed at his bluntness but was prevented from apologizing as one of the SHIELD physicians walked in carrying a stack of papers and both men's attention snapped to her.

"Mr Stark, Doctor Banner _._ I'm Doctor Mitzuyuma; would you like to take a seat?"

The two men eyed one another before sitting in the chairs the doctor had gestured to. She sat opposite them a flash of discomfort in her eyes, before she cleared her throat and began.

"As you are aware this situation is unique due to Mr Stark Snr's altered physiology but from all the tests we've done I'm afraid the prognosis doesn't appear to be good. The massive amount of radiation he was exposed to managed to eradicate the numerous viruses floating in his system but at the same time it mutated the antibodies that they are now attacking healthy cells at an advanced rate, so advanced that even his healing factor can't keep up."

Tony felt the whole world spin.

He'd been expecting something like this, he _had_ but that didn't make the news any easier to hear.

"So what you're saying..." He swallowed thickly "Is that his body is essentially killing itself and there isn't anything you can do about it?"

Doctor Mitzuyuma looked uncomfortable but nodded.

"That appears to be the top and bottom of it Mr Stark."

Tony doesn't want to ask the next question, it lies on his tongue like a lead weight but he knows he needs to know.

"How long?"

The woman sighs softly and runs a hand through her hair, she looks worn and tired.

"We can't be sure..."

Tony made a hissing noise through his teeth but kept a lid on the comment that immediately sprang to mind. Bruce placed a steadying on his shoulder and thanked the doctor for her time, she didn't need to be told twice and practically sprinted from the room.

"Tony...?"

The billionaire shook his head as his brain processed the information he'd just received and basically came up with the conclusion fuck his life.

_Fuck. His. Life._

~End Chapter 28~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I officially fail at life *facepalm.*


	29. Chapter Twenty-Nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which tough decisions are made, the WSC are still trying to meddle and things come to an end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I procrastinated so much over this. I'M SORRY! 
> 
> I ALSO FAIL AT LIFE. I accidentally posted this chapter before 28 so you may need to go and read that to make sense of this one... SORRY. THE FANFICTION GODS WILL PUNISH ME!

Daddy Dearest

Chapter 29.

Tony didn't leave the medical bay for the next 48 hours.

This was seriously saying something considering the billionaire's natural eversion to anything medical related and his probably less than healthy hatred of SHIELD and their black hole of sneaky secrets and lies. But there was nothing in heaven, hell or earthly bound that was going to move him from Howard's side.

Surprisingly no one objected to this.

The rest of the Avengers in fact were fully behind Tony and took it in turns to keep him company and occasionally bully him into eating. Something that he was grateful for although he would never admit it out loud. Like himself Bruce had also not left the bay since the doctor had given him the prognosis preferring to keep his own tabs on Howard's condition. It wasn't that he didn't trust the SHIELD physicians he just trusted his own eyes and instincts more and he had a better understanding of the older man's physiology that the SHIELD medics couldn't even hope to grasp.

Regardless of the reasons Tony was grateful for the company, he was pretty convinced he'd have snapped if he'd been left to his own devices.

They were once again sat by Howard's bedside, him, Bruce and Steve. Steve was sitting silently in the corner, sketchbook propped up against his knee the 'skritch' of the pencil across the paper the only sound in the room. Bruce had a tablet in his hand, eyes dark and face drawn in concentration as he worked through the latest set of labs and Tony was sat in complete silence his gaze never straying from Howard's sleeping face or the steady hum of the medical equipment.

For a moment the room seemed freeze in time as the still body on the bed twitched and the dark ringed eyes slid open.

Then as if nothing had changed the universe started flowing again and the three Avengers in the room crowded around the bed alert and on edge.

"Howard?" Steve's voice was quiet and laced with concern.

The glazed brown eyes flicked to the source of the sound, his lips moving sluggishly but no sound slipping out. Tony stood silently next to him unsure what to do or say, while Bruce checked over his vitals. The atmosphere was tense, awkward and the three men just wanted the moment to be over. Finally Bruce nodded that everything was okay and backed away as Steve spoke again his broad hand resting on Howard's shoulder.

"Howard, can you understand what I'm saying?"

His head lolled forward in what they assumed was a nod which was followed by a low moan of pain which dispelled any relief the trio may have felt at the reply. The physicist poked a few buttons on the console and Howard seemed to melt backwards into the bed in relief, Tony let out a breath and began to move slowly away from the bedside only to be stopped by a hand wrapped around his wrist. Tired eyes followed the line of his arm and along the gangly arm holding him fast.

"Ant'ny..."

Tony swallowed around the lump in his throat.

"I'm here..."

Howard's lips moved but again no sound emerged and his hand slipped from around Tony's wrist, falling slack to the bed as he slipped back into unconsciousness. Tony blinked back the tears threatening to spill and took a stuttering breath trying to regain his composure, he would not break down now; not here where fucking SHIELD and Steve could see. Fuck no that was not happening. Bruce seeming to sense what was happening wrapped an arm around Tony's upper arm and led him toward the door.

"Come on Tony we haven't left here in two days, I think we need a break... You got this Steve?"

Steve nodded and grateful for the excuse Tony allowed himself to be led from the room.

The two of them barely made it five feet out of the door before they ran quite literally into the director of SHIELD. Nick Fury looked completely unsurprised at their appearance, in fact he looked as if he'd been waiting for them, well one of them at least.

"Stark, we need to talk."

Tony looked up at him bleary eyed not quite registering the request and Bruce's grip on his friends arm tightened slightly.

"I don't think now is a good time Director." The physicist answered, his voice clipped.

Fury didn't reply but the look on his face made them both aware that there was no room for argument and his voice was as clipped as Bruce's when he replied.

"I don't believe I was talking to you Doctor Banner."

Bruce flushed with a momentary surge of anger but Tony shook his head and let out a long suffering sigh and ran a hand through his dirty hair looking more worn than the Director had ever seen him.

"Whatever Fury, where are we having this little party?"

Nick rose an eyebrow at the billionaire's easy agreement and began walking down the corridor toward his office. With a reluctant grimace both men followed him wondering just what clusterfuck they were both walking into now. The office was silent as they entered, Fury sat behind his desk; hands steeped in front of him face dark and unreadable and both men couldn't help but feel a quiver of something tremble inside them.

"Take a seat."

Tony sat but Bruce remained standing, unwilling to give up his position in case he needed to make a hasty retreat, the Director took no mind of it and turned his attention to the billionaire sat in front of him.

"We need to talk about Howard's condition."

Tony felt his stomach twist and he seemed to sink back into the uncomfortable office chair; he was just done with all this bullshit.

"What about him. He's dying, that's what the doctors said." He kept his voice as bland as possible.

Fury didn't look impressed by the response and if Tony's eyes weren't mistaking him (which at this point was entirely possible, he'd been up for pretty much three days straight by this point) he actually looked a little uncomfortable. Well that certainly didn't bode well, a world where Nick motherfucking Fury was uncomfortable over something was not a world that Tony cared to be associated with. Mustering up the last dregs of his swagger he pinned the other man with an unimpressed look.

"What aren't you telling me Fury?"

There was a flicker of eyes and then Nick was composed once again.

"It has been suggested that he be put back in to cryo-status." The slight snarl on his lips indicating that this was _not_ his idea.

Tony saw red, all previous fatigue forgotten.

"Are you fucking _kidding_ me?! That's what created this whole situation in the first place!"

Fury took a deep breath, forcing his voice to be calm.

"No, you being unable to keep your nose out of other people's business created this situation Stark."

The billionaire bit back the next wave of vitriol dancing on his tongue, Fury's point was unfortunately a valid one but that didn't mean he was going to take all of the blame for this mess.

"Well, if you didn't keep peoples _fathers_ …" and he spat the word "…hidden from them and just y'know _told_ them they were _alive_ I wouldn't have had to go on my merry cyber crusade."

It was a definite twisting of the events, Tony _knew_ that but he wasn't going to be made to feel bad for what had been an unfortunate accident on his behalf. The rest of the events had just followed; hell Fury had helped _instigate_ half of them this was just as much his fault as it was Tony's and Tony refused to be fed to the wolves. He glared at Fury who glared back but his heart wasn't in it.

"Stark regardless of blame the truth of the matter is we have a situation. Howard is still a valued member of this establishment and therefore it is his right to have everything done to prolong his life. We may not have a remedy that will cure him now but a few years down the line who knows. Especially if you and Doctor Banner put your heads together."

Again there was that curl to Fury's lips that suggested that these weren't _his_ words and that this was not something he really agreed with and it left Tony feeling cold. Anyone who could twist Fury's arm in such a way was not someone Tony ever wanted to become acquainted with.

"I don't fucking care what me and Bruce can do, I don't care if we fucking cure cancer, all I know is that he is not going back into the fucking freezer because you and the powers that be want another toy that they can play with. Nu-uh, _not_ happening."

Tony was on his feet arms spread wide and braced on Fury's desk, looking exactly like the mad man they so often likened him to. The Director however looked completely nonplussed by Tony's reaction and folded his arms across his chest as he leaned back in his chair, the perfect image of composure.

"It's only a suggestion at this point Stark…" Fury replied, in a tone that suggested that the opposite was probably far closer the truth. "I thought _I_ should be the one to inform you before some stupid intern did."

The sentence grated across Tony's nerves and even though he knew, _knew_ Fury was trying to help him in whatever way he could he could stop the anger taking over.

"Fury, if you think for _one second_ I will let this happen you can go fu…"

"If I may offer my opinion." Bruce's voice was almost painfully polite as he cut across Tony's comment.

Both of the seated men jumped; not visibly but there was a measure of surprise in both of their eyes as if they'd forgotten that he was even there. Fury seemed a little relieved at the interruption and he nodded to Bruce. The physicist shifted more than a little comfortably and removed his glasses; wiping them on his shirt while he pieced together his thoughts.

"I feel that you're all missing a vital point here. Mr Stark senior is still conscious at this point and able to make his own decisions, his rational has not yet deteriorated to a point where he is unable to do so. Therefore you would be infringing on his human rights if you did not allow him the choice at this point. He's not considered a threat…" Here Bruce winced a little "…And is still a private citizen so he should be allowed to choose…. On camera of course."

When he looked up the physicist found both men looking at him with something akin to approval on their faces and Bruce quickly dropped his gaze, not liking being the target of their scrutiny.

"Well it seems Doctor Banner has found a way to solve this little problem." Fury sounded almost pleased.

Tony rolled his eyes; as if _that_ wasn't obvious. But he knew that they would have to work quickly, if whoever wanted Howard back in status caught wind of this they would send someone to assess his capacity and that would not work out well for them, he could just tell. He gave the Director suspicious look and shrugged, spinning around and facing Bruce.

"Good idea Big Guy, come on let's leave the Director to do… whatever it is he does when he isn't harassing us."

The billionaire strode forward with all the dignity he could muster even though his body felt like lead and his heart felt like it was about to explode in his chest from the anxiety. Bruce followed him out deep in thought and looking about as pleased as a penguin in the Bahamas.

"I don't like this..." He said quietly, not really talking _to_ Tony more voicing his train of thought.

Tony nodded in reply, he hadn't liked a damn thing about this whole situation since day one why was now going to be any different?

"..At least Fury gave us a heads up or whatever that was…" Bruce ran a hand through his hair, messing it up even further "…But still; whoever is still pulling strings is still a threat…"

"I hear you bud, but if we get Howard's informed consent, recorded then if they try to take him again we can cause a ruckus; except y'know legally this time."

The physicist chuckled slightly at that.

"That would be a nice change Tony; my 'criminal record' doesn't need any more adding to it."

Tony waved a hand in a dismissive fashion "Psh, please. Domestic terrorist is so 1990's. The new fad is being a traitor."

The lightness of the comment belied the truth behind the words and both of them knew it. Neither of them exactly had exemplary records, it wouldn't take much for them to be 'apprehended' if they were to suddenly fall out of favour and while the idea was horrifying to Tony he could only imagine the fear it held for Bruce.

"Come on you crazy traitor then, let's go save your old man from becoming a Popsicle again. After some food…and possibly a shower because no offence Stark but you smell rank." Bruce joked, although his heart wasn't in it.

Tony let out a sharp bark of laughter and nodded, giving his armpit an unscrupulous sniff and recoiling slightly.

This situation could hold for half an hour.

Steve had sat in silence as Bruce had led Tony out only pausing slightly in his sketching to look at the man lying prone on the medical bed. It was strange but this was the most out of place Howard had seemed to him since the start of this whole fiasco; quiet, still and hooked up to a ridiculous number of machines that he couldn't even begin to name never mind explain what they did. He was used to seeing the man being active, much like his son always was and this stillness disturbed him more than he cared to admit.

They had gone to save him and had ended up putting him in an even worse situation.

And if that wasn't some form of messed up survivor's guilt he didn't know what was.

His eyes darted up as the door to the medical room swung open admitting both Tony and Bruce; they both looked a little better than they had before they'd left just over an hour earlier but the haunted, world weary look still hadn't completely left them. He offered them a small nod and turned back to his drawing feeling more than a little awkward.

"How has he been?" There was gentleness in Tony's voice that had been lacking previously.

"Been kinda fitful..." Steve answered "Mumbling in his sleep."

The billionaire frowned at that, not wanting to imagine the visions running through the old man's head. He'd had enough brushes with death that he knew how much they could haunt your sleeping psyche.

"We need to wake him up Steve, things got complicated again… And well we need to talk to him."

The Captain sighed.

"I had a feeling that might be the case, do you need me to leave?" He asked, closing his sketch book over and placing it on the bedside table, standing to leave the room.

Bruce shuffled a little, looking uncomfortable. "It's up to you Steve, I don't know how well either of you will take the news we were just given or how it will affect either of you but if you want to hear it I have no objections."

The physicist turned his tired gaze on Tony who just shrugged in response.

"It's a free country Cap, although sometimes I do wonder about that."

Steve rolled his eyes and settled himself back into the bedside chair. "Then I'd like to hear what's happening."

The two scientists nodded and Bruce withdrew something from his pocket walking over to Howard. Gently he shook the man asking him to wake up and after a few minutes of no response the brown eyes slid open. His eyes widened slightly when he recognised Bruce and his mouth gaped a little like a dying fish.

"Bruce…Green…"

The physicist gave a long drawn out sigh; he hated the reactions that people meeting his other half seemed to invoke but as he looked closer he saw there was no fear on Howard's face, instead there was a look akin to gratitude and no small amount of intrigue. But not an ounce of fear, Bruce could see where Tony got that particular trait from now and it made him smile a little inside. Howard was certainly more coherent that earlier, clearly recognising those around him; so that would make this whole plan run a lot smoother.

"Yes Mr Stark…"

The was a pained exhale of breath "Incredible…"

Tony and Steve couldn't hide their smirks as Bruce felt the back of his neck flush red but right now wasn't the time to have this discussion. Nor _ever_.

"Mr Stark we need to talk to you about something important."

Howard's jaw clenched and he nodded, he was obviously in a great deal of pain so they had to get this done as quickly as possible. Tony stepped forward and outlined what Fury had told them in his office behind him he felt Steve stiffen as the talked about cryo-stasis; Tony could get that the man still had issues with anything relating to the cold, ice or freezing. Howard listened intently to their explanation his dark eyes pained and glazed but not inattentive and it made Tony's chest twist. By the end of the explanation the elder Stark looked completely worn out and just defeated, completely and utterly defeated; a completely foreign look on the usually assured man's face.

The billionaire sighed. "And that's everything... I, we can only do so much now and we need your help one last time."

There was a rasping breath from the man on the bed as he gingerly shook his head.

"I... No, no more. I just want it to end. I'm tired of all this fighting, I just want to die in peace. I do not want to go back into cryo-stasis nor do I wish to be resuscitated."

Tony blinked away tears as he nodded back feeling relieved and saddened as Howard convulsed as a wave of intense pain hit him. Tony gripped the older man's hand as tightly as he dared trying to offer as much comfort as he could, ignoring the pained stares from both Bruce and Steve. He didn't need to deal with his own emotions right now never mind the emotions of others.

"I, um Steve, Tony would you mind giving me and Howard a minute?" Bruce said eerily calm.

Both of the other men looked up and blinked a little confused and shocked but didn't argue with the request (even if Tony kind of wanted to.) Steve placed a comforting hand on Bruce's shoulder squeezing once before leaving the room, Tony followed a moment later eying the other man suspiciously. Bruce wouldn't have requested some alone time without good reason but something about it didn't sit quite right with the billionaire, maybe it had been the strangely detached way he had asked or the somewhat vacant look in the physcist's eye but something felt off.

Dear God he hoped Bruce wasn't about to do anything stupid and he let out a small snort of laughter as he realized the irony of that statement. But he had nothing to worry about Bruce had a surprisingly sharp moral compass he wouldn't do anything to put anyone at risk.

Steve raised an eyebrow at his snort of laughter and Tony shrugged.

"Just musing on the irony of things. " He muttered.

The soldier seemed to understand and let the subject drop but he still stared at Tony, blue eyes sharp and thoughtful.

"You're doing the right thing you know."

Tony started; not entirely sure where that comment had even come from and turned to Steve seeking further explanation. The blond shifted slightly, uncomfortable under the sudden scrutiny but he continued onward.

"By Howard I mean, giving him the choice... He's had so few of those recently and I guess it makes me feel better knowing he got to make his last one for himself. Thank you."

It was as if Steve's statement was an omen as all around them warning alarms went off. The two men looked at one another and dashed into the medical room. Inside it was strangely tranquil despite the alarms blurring all around them; Bruce was standing to the side of Howard's bedside his face an impassive mask but Tony could see the grief, pain and was that guilt in his eyes? He didn't question it as he sat down and took hold of the weathered hand of his father feeling the man's shallow pulse slowly crawl to a halt, Tony's mechanical heart seemingly with it. It had been agonizing the first time he'd lost his parents although admittedly that had been more for his mother than his father. This time, this time it was all for Howard and it burned like a thousand suns.

Steve stood at the door stopping any of the other medics coming in explaining that this was Mr. Stark's final request and that they really should know better than to intrude on such an emotional moment when they clearly weren't wanted. A few of them looked a little shamed-faced but the majority just looked a mixture of frustrated and a little saddened, they may be SHIELD but they were still human and grief was something they had all experienced.

The seconds ticked by into minutes and the alarms finally ceased their incessant racket. Tony sat motionless still clutching on to his father's hand, feeling the warmth begin to seep from it. Beside him Bruce laid a hand on his shoulder, gently trying to get Tony's attention.

"Tony do you... do you want me to..."

The billionaire gave a slow, slow nod and the physicist swallowed.

"Time of death, 20:06."

The silence that engulfed the room was stifling, it felt like a physical vice around Tony's chest squeezing all the air from his lungs. He let go of Howard's hand, laying it gently on the crisp sheet before standing and backing away almost like a frightened child. Without a word he turned and strode toward the doorway SHIELD minions scattering in his wake. Bruce and Steve followed hot on his heels wary of what Tony was planning as he darted into an empty room and shut it behind him.

The soldier and physicist looked at each other worried and Bruce tentatively knocked on the door.

"Tony..."

There was a strangled sob and both men felt their hearts lurch in sympathy.

"Tony, can you let us in." Bruce said softly.

"'s open." Came the muffled reply.

Steve opened the door slowly the thin beam of light illuminating the darkened room, the billionaire sat curled up in the corner arms wrapped around his knees, face buried in them looking for all the world the lost little boy he always denied ever being. The two men sat next to him unsure what to say.

"What happened?" Tony choked out, feeling a little bit of his outburst.

"I dont know..." Bruce replied, his voice still sounding somewhat detached "He just closed his eyes like he was at peace and then everything just went down from there."

There was a hiccup as the billionaire tried to compose himself and Steve sat beside him a solid wall of comfort. He knew that he could grieve later, in his own way; right now his comrade needed him.

"At peace?" Tony asked finally looking up from his knees, his face was blotchy and tear streaked.

Bruce nodded "Yeah... He was just ready to go."

"Then good..."

The words were quiet but heartfelt and Bruce felt his twist painfully in his chest as his best friend suffered yet another loss.

"Yeah... Good." Because what else could he say at this point?

The billionaire seemed to be slowly pulling himself back together, still frayed slightly at the edges but more like the Tony they both knew. He offered them both a weak smile and Steve clapped him on the shoulder.

"It's better this way... he's not hurting anymore and he won't think he's being a burden anymore. Yeah, it's for the best and now we can move on."

There was a tremor still present in his voice but the words were sincere and Tony knew that the two man sat next to him shared his sentiments wholeheartedly. They had all had their world's turned upside down and both had found their way through it but this time none of them would have to do it alone.

They were a team.

They were Avengers.

The End.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The End.
> 
> A/N: Holy fucking shit it's finished except for the epilogue... I'm sorry I took so long in finishing this, I kinda knew what I wanted to write just couldn't quite figure out how to write it. It actually ended up being shorter than I intended as I cut out an entire section because I felt it gave just a tad too much away. I may release it as a bonus after the epilogue as it'll make more sense then.
> 
> Anywho... Thank you, Thank you, THANK YOU! To everyone for all your support, reviews, favs, follows and just sitting down and reading the damn thing. You all have my eternal gratitude and love.


	30. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Tony says his goodbyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go.... Please don't kill me for this.

Daddy Dearest

Epilogue.

It rained the day they laid Howard to rest.

The service was short and informal but surprisingly beautiful, something that really shouldn't have surprised Tony considering Pepper's involvement in the whole thing; she really did have exquisite taste simple yet refined. Tony had been joined by Bruce, Steve and Clint; the four of them carrying in the coffin to the small chapel closely followed by Thor, Natasha, Pepper and oddly enough Nick Fury. The billionaire had wanted to kick up a fuss at that but after stern looks from pretty much everyone he'd relented remembering that Nick had also been Howard's friend and deserved a chance to say goodbye properly.

After the service (in which no one really said anything because what could you say at this point?) the mismatched group walked outside solemnly while Howard's body was committed to the crematorium and they waited on the ashes. Tony had been adamant about this one thing, he was far too paranoid about people attempting to steal his father's remains; cremation had a nice finality to it that he deeply appreciated.

After a brief period a serious looking person clad in a dark suit appeared from nowhere clutching an ornate urn which he promptly handed to Tony muttering a quiet 'sorry for your loss under his breath. The billionaire just smiled politely and nodded to the man, fighting down the urge to clutch it to his chest like a spoilt child.

The group just stared for a moment lost in their own thoughts and it just grated on Tony's nerves, he hated this stillness it was suffocating. Without even hesitating for a second the strode forward into the silent graveyard; needing some kind of movement, of action. He thought he heard the rustle of clothing meaning someone was about to follow him but abruptly stopped as Pepper's calm, quiet voice murmured that 'He needs some time alone.'

God bless that woman, she'd always been able to read his moods even before they'd become involved and now was no exception. He needed the time to collect himself, organise his thoughts and process his emotions and he damn well didn't want to do it with an audience.

His footsteps echoed loudly as he paced the pathways leading toward the back of the cemetery. The paths were overgrown with weeds and nettles, just more proof of how often people really visited these places but he could understand the reasons why.

No one wanted to be reminded of what they had lost.

His pace slowed as he reached a large angel statue, it appeared to be in better condition than most in the area but thin vines of ivy were still wound around the base. Tony stood silent for a moment before crouching and pulling the ivy away from the bronze plate at the base of the statue, gently placing the urn on the ground.

_Here Lies Maria Collins Stark (nee Carbonell)_

_Beloved Wife._

_Devoted Mother._

"Hi mom." Tony murmured quietly not even knowing why he was talking, he didn't believe any of this stuff but talking comforted him "I know it's been a while... Too long really, I... A lot has happened recently. Howard... _Dad_ , he was alive, he survived the crash and Obie hid him for so long..."

The billionaire gritted his jaw, this _wasn't_ what he had come to talk about those were things to deal with another time.

"Thing is I found him, he was still an asshole but we, well mended things just a little. Not at first but slowly, over time..." He choked back a strangled sob "You would've been proud of him... Well us; I'm just sorry you didn't see it, that you were wherever you are alone for all this time. I just hope he's not making a nuisance of himself now."

Tony sighed unsure how to continue, words normally came so easily to him but now they stuck his tongue to the roof of his mouth like glue. Deciding that action rather than words needed to be used he dug his fingers into the soft ground and began clawing a small hole; uncaring of the state it left him in. He was already soaked, what was a little mud on top of that?

Slowly and with reverence the billionaire opened the urn and tipped the contents into the makeshift grave, carefully filling it over when it was full.

"Rest easy Dad, the world will know you died a hero and Mom, look after him."

He stood then, soaked to the bone his expensive tailored suit smeared with clods of mud and just stayed silent, not wanting to break this bubble quite yet and head back to face the rest of reality. He wasn't given a choice though.

"Mr. Stark."

Tony didn't recognize the voice, it sounded familiar somehow but it wasn't a voice he could put a name to. Slowly he turned around and as his eyes fell on the figure stood before him it took every ounce of his willpower not to punch the bitch in the face.

"You have a fucking _nerve_." He literally snarled, fury welling up from deep inside of him.

The woman appeared completely unfazed by his aggressive manner and merely sniffed primly. She held out her hand for Tony to shake.

"My name is Hawley."

Tony didn't shake it.

Why would he shake the hand of the person who had ordered a full scale attack against his home?

She didn't look surprised at his lack of response and drew her hand back in an elegant fashion.

"I've come to talk to you about the incidents that happened recently. I feel that we have had a great deal of misunderstandings and I would like to correct them."

Tony snorted a laugh, he was done being nice and playing by the rules.

He was _So._ _ **Fucking**_ _. Done._

"Misunderstandings? So I'm to assume the _attack_ on my home, the _p_ _ersecution and torture_ of myself and my friends and the fact that you almost _destroyed_ a fair chunk of America was just a teeny, tiny error of judgement?" His voice was like ice.

Hawley didn't respond immediately her gaze thoughtful and calculating.

"There may have been a few oversights I admit..."

" _Oversights_?" Tony cut in aghast visibly seething "That's the biggest crock of bullshit I've ever heard, impressive considering I know Fury."

Hawley's lips pursed in anger, her eyes flashing.

"Mr Stark I'm attempting to make peace... "

"Oh no, you do _not_ get to make peace. You forfeited that right when you invaded my home and put people I care about at risk. So here is what I am telling you _Hawley_ and don't think for a second that I won't do it because I'm technically a hero. If you or any other of your bureaucratic scumbag friends attempt to hurt one of mine again I will burn your little club _To. The. Ground._ And then take great pleasure in salting the ashes. Do I make myself clear?"

The woman nodded stiffly, her expression pinched and soured.

"Good because I am not losing anything else to you, I already lost my father."

Hawley's expression flickered for just a second an evil, knowing look before returning to something resembling neutral. Knowing he had made his point Tony strode past her intent on reaching the others and possibly drowning his sorrows for the next three days. As he strode past the woman however she caught hold of his arm, her grip like iron.

"A piece of advice for you Mr Stark. Don't put so much faith in your friends; it only hurts more when they fall from that high pedestal you've put them on."

Tony wrenched his arm free from the woman and kept walking without looking back but those last cryptic words played over in his mind.

It was several hours later when Tony finally managed to escape to the room he had taken at the mansion, he was more sober than he would have liked but he just honestly hadn't wanted to drink. He'd still felt angry after his encounter with Hawley and he knew that alcohol and anger were not a good mix. With a deep sigh he flopped on the bed, wishing for all he was worth that Pepper had been able to stay but someone had to keep the world turning.

He was just beginning to drift off when his phone began to ring, with bleary eyes he looked at who was calling.

Fury?

Well that was certainly odd, after all he'd only seen the man earlier that day. Deciding that it was better to get whatever it was out of the way he hit the answer button.

"What's up Fury?"

There was a beat of silence "There's a situation Stark."

"Situation? What kind of situation?"

"Howard's autopsy report just came back, there were some... inconsistencies."

"Inconsistencies?" _W_ _hat_ _the_ _fuck_.

"It appears a specialized substance was introduced into his system shortly before his death. A sedative of sorts; powerful enough to kill any human who is subjected to it. As far as were aware there was only one person in possession of it since he's the one who created it."

Tony was certainly confused now, was Fury trying to say that someone had murdered Howard? The thought was absurd; only people Fury trusted implicitly had been anywhere near the man and they had all been on their side. The director's next words made Tony's blood run cold.

"We need you to bring Dr. Banner in for questioning."

"What?"

This was crazy, Bruce wouldn't have, he couldn't have. Tony's brain refused to process this; it was utter shit. There was no way his best friend could have had a hand in his father's death.

"We need you to bring Banner in for questioning ASAP."

"Fury, this is shit there is no way..."

"Banner is the only one who had access to that particular compound." Nick snapped "Also the camera footage from just before Howard deteriorated has been tampered with using a proximity scrambler. Which considering every other camera in the whole goddamned area was fine meant it was in the fucking room with them. There's enough circumstantial evidence to bring him in for a lot more than just questioning so just get him in now before this blows up in our faces."

Tony just gaped at the phone, his mind reeling. This didn't make any sense. Why? Why would Bruce... No he wasn't believing Fury's bullshit innocent until proven guilty. Without even thinking he was on his feet and racing toward the room Bruce had been assigned determined to get some answers for himself before SHIELD came in and messed things up.

He knocked tentatively on the door and frowned when he received no answer. It was possible that Bruce was asleep so this time he knocked louder fairly confident that the physicist would forgive his intrusion.

Still no answer.

Fear and trepidation curling in his gut he gently turned the handle and pushed the door inwards.

The room was empty.

Tony felt his heart literally stop for a few seconds before he walked into the room, heart aching with the sting of betrayal. He sat down sharply on the bed, the sound of fluttering paper catching his ears. Turning to face the headboard he spotted a single folded sheet of paper, reaching out he opened it and had to bite back tears of outrage at the two words written in Bruce's familiar scrawl.

 _I'm sorry_.

He'd known, known what was coming and had run and it made Tony seethe, feeling violently betrayed because he knew what Fury had told him was true. Bruce had done it, had murdered his father right under his nose and...

_Don't put so much faith in your friends; it only hurts more when they fall from that high pedestal you've put them on._

Hawley's cryptic advice sprang forward and Tony knew without doubt that she already knew about this when they were talking in the graveyard; had known and was already ten steps ahead of them all. Had known his best friend had killed his father and was just fucking toying with him. As the horror of that realization sunk in there was only one word that Tony could think to utter.

"Fuck."

Mind numbed by pain and grief Tony stumbled out the room, heart aching. She'd been right, she'd been so fucking right and now he knew what he needed to do.

He didn't need _them_.

He didn't need _anyone_.

Without so much as a second glance he walked out the front door.

The End.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: It's finished. It's finally fucking finished. OMG YESSSSS! So who saw that coming? Mwahahaha. So Yeah there is going to be a sequel to this, I'm not entirely sure if it's going to be Bruce-centric or Tony-centric but it should be kinda fun to explore the madness I have wrought, I hope that you will enjoy it as much as this.
> 
> Also the beta-reader, collaboration thing is still ongoing so if anyone is interested in helping or throwing in some idea's I would love to hear your input.
> 
> Finally...
> 
> Thank you so so much to everyone; the fact this is finished is as much your victory as it is mine, I literally could not have done this without your support. You are all amazing wonderful people and I loves you for it. *Hugs everyone*


End file.
